The Definitive Year
by Tez-gm
Summary: COMPLETE: The Dark Lord, Voldemort, is at the height of his power. The first war has begun. The Marauders are in their final year. Their friendship is strong, but will it be enough to survive in this time of darkness? [prequel to Dormant Power]
1. Chapter 1 – Summer Days, Drifted Away

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how I made it end…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

The story JK Rowling has said she won't write about (if everything I've read is accurate...but I really hope she does). Many on this site (and on numerous others) have written about it, with the vast majority of them being immensely enjoyable. The younger days of a loving couple, a family outcast, one with a horrible curse, and (if this doesn't rile you, nothing will!) the _smartest_ of the five...and yes that _does_ pain me to write that since I like Remus the best!

But…I mean that, I honestly think Peter was _highly_ intelligent. He kept his secret of being a spy so well hidden, that the only reason he got discovered, was because his picture was taken in Egypt…over a decade later. What odds that the only living person who knows the truth, just happens to see _that_ particular article?

Think about it…somehow, someway, Remus and Sirius suspect each other, but not Peter. Yes, Voldemort would have gotten quite a few werewolves on his side, but come on, we all know Remus would _never_ do that. So why didn't they suspect Peter? I reckon he was feeding both Sirius and Remus info about the other. Reminding Remus about Sirius' betrayal in their fifth year, while telling Sirius that Remus never really trusted him like he did before that event. I kind of tried to capture that in my one-shot I did about Sirius.

This story will take place in the school year 1976-1977 (with the only exception being the epilogue) purely because that's just the way I see how it fits in. I've even gone to the extreme of finding out when full moons occur for this time (just if they were early or late in the month, I don't care _exactly_ what day they occurred on). Oh yes, I've tried to make this as serious as I can, while allowing for the general humour…fine, _havoc_, that we know those four would cause.

Well, well, who would have believed it? My prequel is done! My other stories have been 'prepped' for this one…meaning I've made some slight mods to them. The hardest part of this? Trying to remember that Peter is still good, and writing him accordingly. That and writing the pranks, funnily enough (they're quite tricky to write down!). The easiest bit? Putting in subtle hints as to what we actually know that happens…and the first is in this very chapter (kind of)!

Just a few things; since Half Blood Prince is near enough to being out, all of my fics are AU (but you knew they would be anyway). I've also decided that Lucius, Bellatrix and Narcissa have all graduated, and elected to have Walden Macnair be Severus' main friend in this. The reason? Quite simple really; he's the 'creature' executioner, and there's a certain werewolf in this story…it just kind of made sense.

You wanted me to answer your question, LMD, so I shall; you'll see in ch…15 I believe (you're close, but not _quite_ right though)! My style is amazing! Well…um…thanks very much!

Destroyer, what ships do I have? I tried not to have any in them, in an attempt to get more people to read them! I will probably end up having pairings in the sequel…but they won't be the ones you mentioned!

This chapter is unbeta-ed as such…but shall be updated accordingly. I just thought I might get a few chapters out _before_ Half Blood is released. I shall endeavour to update once a week. Don't worry Sonic and Matt, I just want people to know that I wrote this before HBP…and any ideas that may be similar in it are purely coincidental. I'll only get about 3 chapters out before it's released anyway, then I'm not going to update for a month, ok.

Oh, one more thing; The Marauder's Map…I base its creation on what Remus says in the Shrieking Shack of the Prisoner of Azkaban book.

Right, I reckon that's probably enough stalli…ah, background. I suppose I should actually start this thing. So, I bring you…'The Definitive Year'; enjoy (I hope)!

And remember; everything that has an end, has a beginning (yes, Tux, I am quite aware I put it back to front!)…

* * *

**Chapter 1 – Summer Days, Drifted Away**

September first dawned with a magnificent golden glow encompassing Caversham Court. A spectacular sight for most, including those living inside number 11. That house was home to the Potter's; Harold, his wife Danielle, and their only son, James. There was also another who called this place home; James' best friend, Sirius Black.

Sirius had moved in with James and his parents last summer, after leaving his own home for personal reasons. Sirius and James attended the same school as each other, and both were eager to see their other two best friends, Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin. Today was the day school started up for the year, and this time next year, the four of them would graduate.

The school was called Hogwarts. An unusual name to some, but not as unusual as what they were taught. For Hogwarts was no ordinary school, its correct title was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. James' parents were both magical folk as well, while Sirius came from a pureblood wizarding family.

Upstairs in one of the bedrooms slept one of the young wizards. A pair of glasses could be seen on the bedside table as an unruly mop of black hair started to stir. James Potter slowly blinked open his hazel eyes and let out a groan as the morning light pierced the gap between his curtains. He wanted to roll over and go back to sleep, but knew he had to finish his packing. He reasoned that that could wait until after breakfast though.

He got out of his bed, grabbed his glasses and stretched before heading downstairs. As was normal for this time of morning, he was the only one up. His parents had both left for work earlier, and had written a note reminding him and Sirius to not be late for the train, like they nearly were last year.

James smiled and helped himself to some bacon that Danielle had left for them. Since he had turned seventeen a few months ago, James was able to use magic without the restrictions that the Ministry of Magic previously had in place. As he flicked his wand to get his toast ready, he could smell the bacon tingle his senses. He quickly ate his breakfast before grinning to himself. He opened the kitchen door, allowing the pleasant aroma of bacon to waft through into the living room. James then settled himself at the table and waited.

Exactly ten seconds had passed when a black whirlwind blew into the kitchen. James may have been worried, had he not already eaten, as the blur then proceeded to consume every remaining morsel of food before coming to a stop. A quite tall teenager with longish black hair and grey eyes stood in the blurs' place. As Sirius Black looked over at the table and noticed James' smirk, he instantly became rather cautious.

"Ok, Prongs. What did you do?" Sirius asked, quite warily.

"Nothing, Padfoot. Nothing at all."

"I don't believe you. You'd better not have switched this again like last time!"

"Hey, it's not _my_ fault you decided to eat dog food!" James defended himself.

"Rubbish, of course it was your fault! It's always your fault!"

"I'm not the one who betrayed Moony, Padfoot."

Silence followed this comment, and Sirius' eyes flashed with anger, and also sorrow.

"I thought we agreed to never speak of that again. We swore on it!" Sirius growled.

"_You_ swore on it, I was too busy watching Wormtail's reaction."

Sirius scowled but let the matter drop. He remembered what he did that night, the night his stupidity nearly cost the lives of three people. If James was Sirius' best friend, then Severus Snape, also a final year student this year, was his bitter enemy. James, Sirius and Peter had finally figured out Remus' secret that he'd hidden from them since the first day they met each other.

Once a month, Remus would disappear, only to be found the next day in the hospital wing. At first, Sirius and the others had shrugged it off as Remus being incredibly unlucky, but eventually his excuses started to become more and more farfetched. After finding out that Remus' absences always occurred the night of full moon, they came to the correct conclusion; Remus was a werewolf.

Remus had not told his friends as he'd been scared that they would abandon him. The four of them were inseparable, and were known throughout the school as pranksters. Collectively, they called themselves 'The Marauders'. But they were careful enough to not be caught in the act. Unfortunately this proved quite difficult at times, and the four of them had spent more than their fair share cleaning rooms for their detentions, James and Sirius particularly.

Remus had been most surprised when his friends dedicated themselves to the task of becoming animagi, or someone that can transform into an animal at will. Knowing that werewolves are only harmful to humans, they reasoned that by being animals, they could be with Remus and help him try to relax during this time. They finally achieved the feat around two years ago, in their fifth year, a further two and a half years after finding out about Remus' condition. The process was an arduous one, which took a lot of concentration and dedication, but they finally achieved their goal.

Peter would transform into a rat, Sirius' form was that of a large black dog, with James having the ability to change into a stag. They had given themselves nicknames based on their transformations; Remus could only have been Moony, Peter was given Wormtail, Sirius gave himself the title of Padfoot, and James had been called Prongs.

The quartet prowled the grounds once a month, and quickly decided to make a map detailing where everything was. Remus, being the cleverest of the four had put most of the charms on the map, protecting it from unwanted eyes. If anyone tried to read the map, which they called 'The Marauder's Map', without the correct password, the piece of parchment would insult them. Such was the way their young pranking minds worked.

Becoming animagi was an impressive achievement for three fifteen year old wizards, but not quite as impressive as their ability to keep it secret from everybody. Animagi, by wizarding law, are required to be registered, but Sirius, James and Peter had decided against doing this. And Remus certainly wasn't going to force them to register, as he didn't want his condition being listed as the reason they underwent the whole process in the first place. Only two other students knew about Remus' lycanthropy; a fellow Gryffindor final year, Lily Evans, and also Severus Snape.

Lily had found out on her own, even before Remus' friends did. She, like the others had not been put off by knowing this, and really felt sorry for Remus. Lily had also decided to not inform anyone about it, something which Remus was very grateful for. Severus had found out about Remus late in their fifth year, but it wasn't by himself.

Severus and the Marauders, James and Sirius in particular, had not seen eye to eye since the day they arrived at Hogwarts. This wasn't helped that they had been sorted into Slytherin and Gryffindor respectively, the house rivalry between the two was infamous. The three of them had been in more than a few scuffles with each other, but that was nothing compared to what happened that near-fateful night around a year and a half ago.

Sirius had been fed up with Severus' continuing snide comments, and eventually snapped. He told Severus that if he wanted to see something interesting, then he might want to check out the Shrieking Shack one night. Severus had no idea that this was the place where Remus was taken for his transformations. He found out to his detriment, when Remus, in his werewolf state, attacked him.

Well he would have if it weren't for James. James had been horrified when Sirius told him what he'd done, and had risked his own life to drag Severus away, something Severus hated him even more for. Because when one wizard saves another, they are inextricably linked with a wizarding bond. Severus had been told, by the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, to never inform anyone about what he saw that night. Something which he found difficult to do, but he had honoured the Headmasters wishes.

Remus himself had been absolutely furious at Sirius after finding out what really happened. Had he killed Severus, Remus would have wound up in Azkaban prison. But since he was a Dark creature, he most likely would have been terminated faster than you can say 'werewolf'. It had taken Remus until midway through his sixth year to begin to trust Sirius again.

James got up from the table and headed back upstairs to finish packing his trunk. He was midway through it, when a highly annoyed Sirius came into his room with his wand drawn, a gesture James soon returned.

"That does it, Prongs! Where did you hide my mirror?" Sirius asked.

"I'll let you know once you hand over my cloak, Padfoot" James coolly replied.

"We have exactly two hours to get to the platform. When we arrive, you'd better have given me my mirror back!"

"And I'd better have my cloak!"

They then glared at each other, before reluctantly lowering their wands.

"Your cloak's under my bed."

James nodded. "Thank you, your mirror's in my trunk. You're right though, we'd better get ready. Good thing we both got our Apparition licenses this summer, Sirius. This'll be way easier than last year!"

"I know that, James. Should be safer too. I find it ridiculously funny that you had to go to Ireland for your test though!"

"Shut up, Padfoot. It was a piece of cake. At least I actually got to go somewhere interesting, unlike Moony who ended up at Hogsmeade."

"True. Speaking of Moony, I still can't believe they did that to his parents. How atrocious" Sirius said, with a shake of his head.

James nodded, before continuing to pack his things into his trunk. "I know. Remus sounded pretty cut up about…"

"PRETTY CUT UP! They killed both his parents, James! What else is he supposed to be feeling, happy!" Sirius nearly screamed.

"Calm down, Padfoot, I just meant that I hope he's alright. He didn't say much in his letters."

Sirius snorted, "he's probably been studying all summer for the NEWT's."

James laughed, "I fear you may be right! Anyway, you ready to go yet?"

Sirius nodded, "yep, I'm all packed. I'll just grab your cloak from under my bed."

Sirius made to leave the room, but found himself flat on the floor instead. He rolled over, and saw James laughing at him, his wand outstretched. Sirius got up off the floor and raised his wand.

"Don't even try it, Padfoot. You don't think I forgot to silence you, did you?"

Sirius glared and slowly backed out of the room. Once he got into his room, he dived under his bed and pulled out a shimmering cloak. This was no ordinary cloak though, it was an invisibility cloak.

"Ruddy Prongs. I don't believe I fell for…" he stopped as he realised he could speak, and that James had lied. He then grinned evilly as a plan formed in his mind. He quickly pulled James' cloak over himself before slowly making his way back to James' room.

James has happily humming to himself, congratulating himself on a prank on his best friend well done. He was blissfully unaware of the invisible person slowly making his way to where James had his trunk open. Sirius spotted his opportunity when James went over to his walk-in wardrobe to grab some more clothes. Sirius quickly threw the cloak over the trunk and slowly made his way back outside. He was nearly back to his room with James' trunk, when he heard yelling,

"PADFOOT! GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!"

* * *

An further hour passed, during which time both teenagers had managed to wrestle with each other more than once. They had finished packing and were preparing to apparate to Kings Cross Station to catch the train to Hogwarts. The summer break had gone by far too quickly for their liking, and James remembered the best moment of it.

James had spent the last three years trying to convince Lily to go on a date with him, and she'd finally agreed towards the end of their sixth year. This had led to an excursion to London with his friends, Lily and her younger sister, Petunia. As James was lost in the moment, remembering how beautiful Lily looked, Sirius had to go and ruin it for him. In Sirius' eyes, James had violated the 'Marauder code' and had told Lily about them being animagi.

"I still can't believe you told her about us!"

"Why not? She already knew about Moony being a werewolf. Hell, she even figured that out _before_ us!"

"But still, did you _have_ to tell her that we're animagi!"

"Padfoot, we've already been over this. I'm Head Boy, and she's Head Girl. She's going to notice me not being there once a month, and she'll get really annoying."

"But you told me last year that she already was annoying!"

"You know what I mean. She'll wonder where I go every full moon, and I'm not having her think that _I'm_ a werewolf too! And I _don't_ recall me saying that at all, thank you very much!"

"You said it just after she turned you down for a date. How many times was that anyway?"

"Do you want to visit a muggle hospital this time, Padfoot?" James gently asked.

Sirius' eyes widened and he quickly waved his hands. "Ok, ok, I'll be good! I still can't believe you did that to me!"

"Well, I did warn you…"

"No you didn't!"

"Yes I did, countless times actually. It's not _my_ fault you weren't listening before I hexed you!"

"Was so"

"Was not"

"So"

"Not"

"So"

"Not"

"So"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, I'm not playing _this_ game again!"

"Ha, I win!" Sirius said triumphantly.

James scowled, and then sighed "how does Moony do it, Padfoot?"

"Do what, Prongs?"

"I've been chasing Lily for the last three years, and the first time her sister sees _him_, she's all over him! I thought _we_ were the good-looking ones?"

"You mean that _I'm_ the good-looking one. You can only get dates because for some odd reason, witches think you can play Quidditch!"

"Hey, it's not my problem that girls want to run their fingers through my wild, untamed hair!"

"Oh Merlin, I think I'm going to be sick!" Sirius said, putting both hands over his mouth as he pretended to throw up.

He then grinned, "besides, they'd _much_ rather be with me, Prongs."

"You! Ha, don't make me laugh, Padfoot!"

"It's true. I've been with way more girls than you!"

"That's because you spend more time on _your_ hair than _they_ do!"

"Hey, that's not fair! I like to look good for my adoring fans" Sirius said, proudly bowing to his friend.

"I never knew Snivellus was on that list."

Sirius stopped mid-bow and glared at James. "Oooh, how low can you get! That hurts, Prongs, it really does."

"Whatever. There's one person you haven't been with though, and that's Lily."

"Technically, you haven't been with her either. One date doesn't count I'm afraid."

"Does to!"

"No it doesn't. Maybe you should ask Moony about it" Sirius replied with a grin.

"Why?"

"Well, he's with her sister now. I'm sure he can find out some things about Lily from her for you."

"Hey, great idea! He didn't seem interested in her though."

"Of course he didn't, he's a werewolf remember. He's afraid of committing himself to anyone like that through fear of rejection. I've heard werewolves can become quite animalistic and feisty around the time of full moon."

"Really? And exactly _how_ would you know this, Padfoot?" James asked with a grin.

"I _read_, Prongs. Moony might be able to tell you about it sometime" Sirius retorted with a glare.

James smirked maliciously before responding "tell me _what_? How to read, or what he and you…"

"SHUT UP, PRONGS! I SWEAR, IF YOU FINISH THAT SENTENCE, I'LL BE IN AZKABAN FOR MURDERING YOU!"

James was struggling to contain his mirth as the two of them made their way into the living room. Just before they apparated to the designated Apparition point at Kings Cross Station to wait for the train, James turned to Sirius.

"Incidentally, I didn't know you _could_ read!"


	2. Chapter 2 – The Reality Of War

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Probably should point out the obvious. There is only one pairing in this; James and Lily ('duh' I hear some people say!), but that won't happen for a little while yet. Also, the 'code' near the end of this chapter…I already know it's not mine. I didn't put the rest of it, as it relates _directly_ to Star Wars…which this story is obviously not about.

Yes, I know how frustrating that is also, fireflash! I keep getting them all mixed up and think 'hang on, that guy's dead…oh no he's not, that was _another_ story!' That is probably the main reason why I don't start to post my stories until I have at least or near enough to, finished a draft copy! Makes for reading the reviews quite interesting at times…like having you figure out the gist of it after the _10th_ chapter! How did you _do_ that, lol! I can let you in on something though; wands become a key issue in the sequel to BotE (yup, it's official!)…which I am, as of now, totally stuck at what to do in it, lol! Cheers for the comments (both you and irishchick890), and glad you like them!

* * *

**Chapter 2 – The Reality Of War**

After arriving at Kings Cross Station, James and Sirius made their way through the magical barrier between platforms nine and ten. James had a large grin on his face while Sirius kept muttering things like "can't ruddy read…get him back for that" under his breath. Sirius was so engrossed with his thoughts, that he didn't notice James had stopped until he ran into him.

"Ruddy hell, Prongs?! What'd you do _that_ for?!!"

"Just savouring the moment, Padfoot. This'll be the last time we do this."

"Yeah well, you could've said you were going to stop, you idiot!" Sirius exclaimed, rubbing his nose.

"Well, _excuse_ me for caring!" James said before looking around for his friends.

Sirius suddenly smirked, "hey look, there's Lily!"

"Where?!!" James said, whirling around at where Sirius was pointing.

"Oops, sorry about that, it's Snivellus instead" Sirius grinned as James scowled.

"Why you insolent little…"

"Hi Peter, how was your summer?" Sirius asked, totally ignoring James as a short tubby boy with dirty blond hair and beady eyes made his way over to them.

"Not bad, better than Remus' at any stretch. I can't believe they did that."

James grimaced. "Nor could I, but then again, Death Eaters are scum."

Sirius nodded in agreement. "It's getting totally out of control. But how do you stop something like that?"

"No idea, Padfoot. You guys seen him yet?" Peter asked.

James shook his head, "no, I was hoping you've seen him."

"He's on the train, reading" a female voice from behind them said.

James smiled. He didn't need to turn around to know who said that. Only one person had a voice that beautiful.

"He's not studying for the NEWT's by any chance, is he Lily?" James asked as he slowly turned around and faced the redheaded witch with sparkling green eyes.

"I don't know. I heard about what happened to his parents, do you mind if I sit with you for a little while this trip?"

"We certainly wou…" Sirius began.

"We'd be honoured, most fair maiden" James interrupted with an overly dramatic bow, which happened to include a punch to Sirius' midsection.

"Ok, that's fine. You can sit with us for a bit" Sirius answered, rubbing his stomach and glaring at James.

They four of them then made their way onto the train and headed off to find Remus. They reached the last carriage and found a boy with light brown hair wearing a slightly worn robe. They also would have noticed that he had brown eyes, but since he had a book pushed up in front of his face, they couldn't.

"Er, Moony? You don't have to finish all your books before the first class, you know."

The boy lowered his book, and one could see that he had been crying. Tears could be seen trailing down his face, and James inwardly slapped himself for being so insensitive.

"Oh Merlin! I'm so sorry, Remus! I should have…"

Remus waved him off, and wiped the tears from his eyes. "Forget it, James. I don't need pity right now. So how was your summer?" he asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Pretty good…considering Sirius was always around" James grinned and Sirius shot him a glare, before grinning himself.

"Yeah Prongs. I never knew you could turn red that quickly!"

"Shut up, Sirius! If you even mention that to anyone, I'll kill you!"

"Have you no respect for Remus' feelings, James?" Sirius casually asked.

James stopped, his eyes widened as he turned again to Remus, "oh jeez! I'm sorry, Moony, it's just…hey hang on, why are you smiling?"

"Sirius sent letters telling us about that…what did he call it, oh yes, that _incident_, shall we say" Remus replied, trying his best to keep a straight face. This was made very difficult by the look on James' face; horror, fury and disbelief all in one.

James eventually snapped out of it, and sat down. As the five of them chatted about what they got up to over the break, they were interrupted when their carriage door slid open to reveal a blond haired wizard with hazel eyes hidden behind glasses. He was dressed in a long black robe, which had a Ministry crest on it. James' mouth fell open as he recognised the crest.

"You…you're an Auror!" he stammered.

The man turned his attention to James and only nodded in reply.

"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be chasing You-Know-Who and his followers?" Sirius asked.

The wizard looked at Sirius, who was surprised when the man smirked.

"I'm sorry. I don't know who you're talking about" he replied.

"You know, You-Know-Who" Sirius stated, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

The Auror was still smirking and responded, "I'll tell you what. You say his name, and I'll answer your question."

Sirius's eyes widened, and as he was about to reply Remus spoke up, "he means Voldemort."

Peter looked at his friend in shock, "since…since when did…did you start to say his name, Remus?"

Remus just closed his eyes as he felt the tears welling up inside them again, "since…since…" he stopped. He couldn't finish that sentence, but was spared when the Auror spoke

"Since he attacked those who he perceives to be a threat. I am sorry for your loss, but you won't be alone. Many more will not make it through this. That is why I am here. The Ministry have decided, with your Headmaster's permission, that Aurors are to be posted around the school to prevent any attacks."

Lily snapped her head up, "what do you mean to prevent attacks? Why would he attack Hogwarts?"

"Why wouldn't he? Destroy the next generation of wizards and witches, many who would be trained to be Aurors to help in this war. Voldemort may not show mercy, but he isn't stupid either. He has gone after those he considers to be the most dangerous, first."

"You said his name!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Of course. I don't fear him, why should I?"

"Maybe because he's running around…" James started.

The Auror cut him off, "I'm aware of what he's doing. That is no reason to not speak his name, however."

"But why are you in our carriage?" Peter asked.

The Auror just looked at Peter expecting him to figure it out, but it was James who did instead.

"In case he attacks the train! He wouldn't…would he?"

"I hope he doesn't, but in these times, one never knows. Forgive me for not introducing myself. Seeing as though you'll be stuck with me all the way to Hogwarts, I guess you should know who I am. My name's Trent, Trent Fuller."

"I'm James, James Potter. These are Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Lily Evans and Remus Lupin."

Sirius thought he saw a flash of recognition in the Auror's eyes when James introduced Remus, but he couldn't be sure. At that moment, a whistle sounded and the train very slowly started to move.

"Pleased to meet you. Shouldn't you three be at the student meeting though?"

James, Lily and Remus shot out of their seats, "oh Merlin, you're right! We forgot the Prefect meeting!" Remus exclaimed as he yanked the door open and ran into the corridor with James and Lily racing after him, leaving behind two laughing students and one highly amused Auror in their wake.

* * *

"You can sit down, you know" Remus said, looking at the Auror who was standing by the door.

"Yeah, James doesn't bite…hard."

"Shut up, Sirius!" James then turned to the Auror before adding "he's right though. You can have a seat if you want."

"It's alright. I expect to be standing up most of the year, so I may as well get used to it. I'm guessing you four aren't normally this quiet."

"Well, no. But we can't really discuss stuff with you here…no offence."

Trent chuckled. "None taken. Unless it's something illegal, I can't really do anything. However, I would most likely have to take your names down if you suddenly openly declared your support for Voldemort though" he smiled wryly.

"Oh I don't think there's any chance of _that_ happening" Sirius replied, a dark look on his face as he remembered reading Remus' letter about what they'd done to his parents.

"We'd rather not discuss what we normally talk about though. You might be tempted to tell people" James added.

"Why, are you planning on pranking someone or something?" Trent asked.

He saw three sets of eyes widen. He couldn't see Remus', as he had already returned his attention back to reading one of his textbooks.

Trent smiled before saying anything. "I see. Well, I don't see the harm in having fun, particularly during these times."

"Um, what do you mean?" Sirius asked.

"I mean, that in these times, people could use a few good laughs."

"Oh, right. If we _were_ to discuss pranks, you...er…wouldn't tell those…involved…would you?" James enquired, carefully picking his words.

"If you _were_ to discuss something that may prove to be quite dangerous, I would have to inform someone. If it's pretty much harmless, then I don't really see a problem."

Trent had to hide a grin as he saw James, Sirius and Peter release a breath they'd been holding. The lunch cart had come and gone some time ago, and Lily had used this time to exit and go back to her friends. Trent decided against sitting down, and instead tried his best to tune out whatever the four young wizards were talking about.

Sirius was feeling a little disappointed that Remus didn't feel like talking about what had happened, but he didn't want to exclude him from their conversations. He tried his best to lighten the mood, and while Remus did put down his book at one point and smiled at them, he quickly returned his focus back to reading. Sirius leant back in his seat and listened to Peter talk about his summer, thinking that this train ride might be the longest he could remember.

Peter didn't really notice Remus' lack of attention, as he'd been too busy listening to James and Sirius bicker with each other. Remus was normally the most reserved of the four of them, so Peter didn't really try all that much to talk to him. He knew that if Remus wanted to talk about his loss, then he would when he was ready. It wasn't Peter's place to force his friend into doing that.

James was probably the least concerned about Remus' plight, as he, like Peter, knew Remus would talk about it with them in his own time, and not before. He was a little put off by the presence of the Auror, as they couldn't really discuss any of the adventures the four of them might get up to during their full moon excursions as animals. To pass the time, he instead focussed on coming up with some new pranks to play, mostly on a certain greasy haired Slytherin that went by the name of Severus Snape.

Remus was doing his best to keep his emotions hidden. The others couldn't possibly know how difficult his summer had been. He consoled himself by throwing himself into his reading, determined to get top marks for all his classes this year. By continuing to keep busy, he reasoned that he wouldn't have to face what he was really feeling.

Trent didn't really care if the teens wanted to make the Slytherin robes read 'Gryffindor Forever'. Nor did he care when James was berating Sirius for sending a letter detailing catching him in quite a compromising position while looking through some of his pictures he had of Lily. He did notice that Remus was continuing to be very interested in his book, despite his friends trying to include him in their discussions.

He remembered his Auror training and the code they were taught; there is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no regret, there is acceptance. He sighed, for he knew all too well what losing people you care about felt like. Oh yes, Remus wasn't the only one who had hid his emotions after losing someone that you were close to.


	3. Chapter 3 – Password, What Password?

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

I have no idea what Auror robes look like. I just imagine that they'd have some easily recognisable symbol on them so people know what they are (just like policemen). Yup, you're right about the code, Necro…I say that in my notes at the top.

Yes, I know I'm being quite mean to Remus. I only do it for one reason; to make his 'story' even more tragic; being bitten at a young age, having to go through those horrendous transformations each month, Sirius betraying his trust in fifth year…do I _really_ need to go on? Besides, if you've read my other stories, you know I try to make it up to him!

Quite right, super…I also found it better to read second time round! Looks like this story is not as popular as the others (maybe it's a tad early to say that though)...shame really, I reckon this one is quite a bit better.

Oh, my Potions Professor's name pronunciation; Tw – where – row (if anyone likes F1 as much as me, you might remember an Argentine driver with that same surname in 1998). You'll find out his first name later on.

* * *

**Chapter 3 – Password, What Password?**

The train finally slowed to a halt, and everyone got off and made their way to the boats that would take them across the lake to Hogwarts. As the enormous castle came into their sight, the four young wizards smiled. This had been their home for the last six years, and they'd be sad to see the back of it in little under ten months time. While they made their way to the castle doors, James got a glint in his eye and faced his friends.

"I've just had a most excellent idea!"

"Great, here we go again…"

"Shut up, Padfoot. Since we weren't able to come up with any adventures, I think the first prank we play should be on that Auror."

"WHAT! Are you _insane_, James!" Remus hissed.

"Not at all, Moony. He cost us quality Marauder time, and that deserves a prank."

The other three cast nervous glances at each other before Sirius next spoke. "I think you've lost your mind completely! But I agree. We should do something to him…"

"But he's an Auror! He won't _see_ the funny side!"

"He won't know it was us, Peter. Here's what we're going to do…"

James then whispered to his friends whose faces all lit up as James explained his idea. They made their way inside the castle and towards the Great Hall for the opening feast, and anyone who knew what they were capable of, would be highly wary of the grins each of them were wearing. They settled into their usual seats at Gryffindor table, and after swapping glares with Severus and the rest of the Slytherins, waited for the sorting to finish.

* * *

After Albus Dumbledore had welcomed everyone back, reminding them not to go into the forbidden forest (whilst looking directly at the four Gryffindors all the way through it), he then announced that several Aurors were being placed around the school for additional security. The Headmaster then clapped his hands once and the tables filled up with all kinds of food. Sirius looked like all his Christmas' had come at once, and began to shovel as much as he could into his mouth.

"Jeez, Sirius, has anyone ever told you how disgusting you are?"

Sirius was about to answer, but had the good grace to swallow first before doing so. "Well, sorry if I like eating…"

"You don't _eat_, you _consume_!"

"Shut up, Remus!"

"At least he swallowed first this time" muttered Peter under his breath, but Sirius heard him.

"Would you care to repeat that, Peter?"

"You know darn well what I said!"

"True, now if you'll kindly excuse me, I must get back to eating."

"Consuming!" his three friends said at the same time. Sirius just rolled his eyes and went back to the feast in front of him.

After dinner had finished, or rather while everyone else waited for Sirius to finish, Dumbledore clapped his hands again, and dessert appeared. Again, Sirius took to it with gusto, his three friends shaking their heads in disbelief. Before Sirius could completely stuff himself though, James nudged him and nodded his head towards the staff table.

Sirius glanced up, and saw what James was looking at. The Auror from the train was standing to one side. Sirius nodded in silent agreement, it was time to put their first prank of the year into action. Remus and Peter caught on to what the other two were doing, and knew their role was to distract anyone from realising that James had pulled his wand out from his robes, pointed it at the staff table and muttered a few words.

Trent was calmly watching the students (he was also amazed at the amount of food a certain someone had eaten), and was caught unawares when a blob of potato hit him in the face. Silence filled the Great Hall as Trent glanced around in the direction it came from and found himself looking directly at Albus Dumbledore.

'Hmm, I don't think _he_ did that somehow. But who else…'

Trent was brought from his thoughts when Sirius shouted "FOOD FIGHT!", grabbed a piece of chocolate cake in front of him and splattered it all over a somewhat shocked Remus. He didn't take all too kindly to that, and he quickly emptied his goblet of pumpkin juice down the back of Sirius' robe, whose face froze as the cold liquid trickled down his back. James and Peter started laughing, until they too got caught in the crossfire.

Soon, most of the Gryffindor table were involved in a full scale food fight, while the other tables looked on in differing moods. Most of the staff found it to be rather amusing, as did the Hufflepuffs. Over at Ravenclaw table, they didn't really know what to think. Not many of them knew what a food fight was, but agreed that this certainly was better than the normal opening feast. The Slytherin table however, were disgusted by how their house rivals was getting this much attention so early in the year. Severus Snape wasn't the only one who was glaring daggers at the Gryffindors.

In the end, the fight only lasted a matter of minutes, during which time Remus, Peter, Sirius and James had taken the brunt of the Gryffindor attacks. Professor McGonagall had stood up and announced that those four would wait at the doors and clean off everyone who had been involved. She also gave the four of them two nights detention for interrupting the opening feast.

* * *

"I still say it was worth it" Sirius said as they made their way back to the dorms from cleaning up.

"Right, at least we didn't lose any points" James added.

"That's because we didn't _have_ any points to start with!" Remus exclaimed.

"Oh quit worrying about it, Moony. Let's just try to enjoy our last year in this place."

"Why Padfoot, that was _almost_ profound" James replied and he wiped away an imaginary tear.

"Thanks Prongs, how nice of you to…"

"I said _almost_, Sirius. Don't forget that" James interrupted with a grin.

Sirius just glared at him but said nothing more as they came up to where James had to branch off towards the Head Students dorm.

"Well, I'll see you three tomorrow then. Don't know if I'll get much sleep actually. Girlfriend and all that, I'm sure you know how it is" he said with a fake yawn.

"What was in her reply to your letter from two years ago? Oh yes, that's right; James Potter, the proctologist called and they found your head!"

James stopped mid-yawn and glared back at Sirius who had a large grin on his face.

"I'm surprised they actually did manage to find it" Remus added, a smile creeping across his face also.

"Shut up, both of you! You're just jealous that me and Lily are finally together!"

"Does _Lily_ know about this arrangement? Maybe we should ask her about it tomorrow" Peter answered.

"You three are _so_ very dead tomorrow" James growled.

"Oooh, we'd better watch out guys. Prongs is going to take on all three of us!"

"I just might you know. See how much you guys can take."

Sirius smirked. "Don't embarrass yourself, James. You don't stand a chance against all of us."

"Just you wait until Potions, Padfoot. In fact, I believe that's our first class after lunch."

He smirked as he saw Sirius' eyes widen before heading off to enter into his dorm.

After he'd gone, Sirius started to laugh.

"Um, Padfoot? Why are you laughing?"

"Maybe he knows what James has planned for him tomorrow?" Peter suggested.

Remus looked at him in disbelief, while Sirius was still laughing.

"This is _Padfoot_ we're talking about!"

"Oh right, good point" Peter replied with a grin.

"Hey, that's not nice you two!" Sirius said after hearing that. "Besides, do you really think Prongs will try to do something in Potions? Think who the Professor is."

The other two shuddered slightly. Professor Tuero was not a wizard to be trifled with. Despite being an ex-Slytherin, he was fair to everyone in his classes, but he certainly didn't take interruptions kindly. That was the reason both Remus and Peter dropped potions for their final two years. James and Sirius only continued it, since both wanted to be Aurors.

"You've got a point. But it wouldn't surprise me if he tried" Remus mused.

"Let him try! I still have to get him back for last year!"

"That's right, I'd forgotten about that! You were in the hospital wing for a week weren't you?"

"I most certainly was not! I was only in there for two days, Wormtail!"

"Well, it was your own fault for teasing him" Remus reminded Sirius.

"Yeah, well…it was worth it to see his face!"

The three of them burst out laughing as they arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady who asked the question she does best.

"Password?"

Silence reigned before Sirius nudged Remus.

"C'mon Remus, what's the password?"

"I um…don't know it, Sirius."

"What? What did you discuss during the prefect meeting then?"

"Patrol roster. We normally let the fifth year prefects choose the passwords."

"You mean…"

"We're stuck here? I'm afraid so, Peter" Remus cut in.

After a long moment of silence, where the three of them were lost in their thoughts, Peter finally spoke.

"Use your charm, Sirius. You're good with girls, maybe you can talk her into opening for us."

"Absolutely not! He tried that two years ago. No password, no entry" the portrait snapped back.

Remus was struck with a sudden idea.

"Hang on a minute. Sirius, didn't James tell you what password he and Lily were going to use for their room?"

"Yeah, they decided on 'Lions Forever'. Why? You're not suggesting…"

"No. I meant that we can get to the Gryffindor common room from there. I read about it in Hogwarts: A History. The Head Boy and Girl have access to their respective house common rooms from their personal bedroom. It's a one-way passage."

"Remus, you're a genius! Let's go!"

With that, the three of them jumped up and hurried off to James' room.


	4. Chapter 4 – Never Believe Everything You

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

So, there's the first prank out of the way. And if you've read Dormant, you'll know what Trent's reaction is!

This will be the last chapter of this fic I post for a while (about four weeks or so, I'd say) due to the imminent release of Half Blood Prince.

* * *

**Chapter 4 – Never Believe Everything You Hear**

"You should've seen the look on your face!"

"Shut up, Padfoot! How in Merlin's name was I _supposed_ to react when I heard knocking on my door!"

"Maybe so, but to…"

"I can send you to the Hospital wing _early_ if you like, Padfoot" James growled, and Sirius quickly quietened down as the four of them made their way to the Hall for breakfast.

Remus and Peter had been watching the banter between the two of them in amusement, but both had more than enough sense not to contribute to it. Remus' idea of using the Head Students' room to get back to Gryffindor tower worked, but it wasn't without incident.

James, of course, hadn't been expecting his three friends to come in when he heard knocking on his door. He had thought it was Lily, and had quickly removed his shirt before telling 'her' to come in. Needless to say, when he saw who it was, he was less than impressed. He had let them use the corridor, but told them that would be the only time he would help them like that.

They settled down for breakfast, comparing timetables.

"So, double Herbology then Potions after lunch, Padfoot. What about you two?"

"Same, but I've got Arithmancy after lunch" Remus answered.

"I've got Muggle Studies" Peter added.

"Nice, so we've all got spare time before dinner. We can go over our first midnight adventure then. It's next week right?"

"Yes" Remus replied before refilling his goblet.

"Are you feeling it yet?"

Remus just glared at Sirius. "Ok, ok, stupid question! What do you reckon our detention will be like?"

"Oh, it'll be brilliant, Sirius. Just wait and see" James replied while rolling his eyes and shaking his head slightly.

* * *

Despite James' threat, he had not done anything to his friends today, but he had not ruled out the possibility of doing something later in the year just yet. The four of them made their way to Professor McGonagall's office after dinner, each caught up with what they might be doing. All of them had hoped they would only be doing something 'simple' like polishing the trophy room without magic, but they had a nasty feeling that McGonagall might make them spend time with Filch. 

"Right, you four. What you did last night was _incredibly_ irresponsible. Especially given the fact that two of you have added responsibilities this year," she said looking between James and Remus before continuing.

"You're all lucky that it's only the first day back, or you would most likely be doing something totally different than what I have in mind."

"Trophy room?" Sirius asked hopefully.

McGonagall pursed her lips before replying "no, Mr Black, you shall not be cleaning the trophy room. For the next two nights, you shall be cleaning, without magic, the dungeons."

"WHAT! But that'll take _way_ longer than two nights!" James exclaimed.

She arched an eyebrow, while allowing a wry smile to cross her face. "Then I _suggest_ you begin right away. You can start with the Potions classroom."

The four of them looked at each other before nodding and slowly making their way to the dungeons to begin.

* * *

Trent happened to be wandering by the dungeons doing his patrol when he heard voices from inside one of the rooms. 

"Hey, watch where you wave that thing around! It's wet!"

"Well, it would be easier with my wand!"

"Will you two shut up! This is hard enough doing this as it is without you two constantly complaining. Now sit still and hold this!"

"Yes, Professor Lupin!"

"Shut up, Sirius."

_thwack_!

"Ouch! Hey, he hit me! That's it Sirius, you're in for it now!"

"C'mon James, I didn't slap you _that_ hard. You just have to _really_ put your back into it!"

"I'll put your back _out _if you're not ruddy careful!"

"Um, bit of help over here guys!"

"How'd you manage to stick that _there_, Peter?"

"Well, if I could figure _that_ out, James, I wouldn't have done it in the first place!"

"Oh, good point. Here, let me help. On the count of three, pull _really_ hard; one, two, three!"

"That's it! It's coming out! No, don't stop, damn! Do it again, yeah?"

Trent decided that he'd heard enough and politely coughed to catch their attention.

"What was that?"

"I think someone's outside!"

"Merlin, I hope it's not Filch, he'll kill us!"

"I'll go and check, stay here."

The door opened and a red-faced James Potter, with a damp towel in his hands, looked up and saw Trent.

"Er…hi. Is there something we can help you with?"

"Do I even _want_ to know what you're doing in there?"

"Oh, we're just cleaning."

Trent raised an eyebrow in reply. "Right. Sounded like you were doing something quite different than _cleaning_."

"Well, we have to do it without magic. Right royal pain in the a…"

"Well that would explain some things I guess" Trent cut in.

"It's for our detention. We have to clean the dungeons for the next two nights. We're still on the first room."

"Oh, I see. Just be careful with what you're talking about in there next time. Mental images and all that."

Trent smiled when he saw James' eyes widen in horror when he realised what some of their comments might have sounded like. He nodded dumbly before closing the door.

As Trent walked away, he could hear James giving the others an earful.

"Nice going you prats! Do you have _any_ idea what we must sound like to someone outside!"

"Um, no, not really. Who was it?"

"That Auror from the Express. Let's just try to do this in _silence_, all right? That way we won't say something that could be taken the wrong way."

"Yes Professor Potter!"

"Shut up, Sirius. Just for that, _you_ can scrub the floor!"

"But that's all I _have_ been doing!"

Their voices were drowned out as Trent rounded the next corner and continued his patrol.

* * *

Trent was coming back after finishing his patrol and wondered how the four wizards were going with their cleaning and popped his head into the nearest dungeon. It was empty and clean, so he kept going until he found them two dungeons down. 

"Not too bad, you four. How much longer do you have to go tonight?"

"Around an hour" Remus answered.

"Mind if I help?"

"How?"

Trent just smiled before raising his wand and pointing at the wall Peter was working on.

"Scourgify!"

The build-up on the wall quickly vanished while Remus looked on in amazement.

"You did the whole wall with _one_ spell!"

"What are you talking about, Remus? That is what that charm's for" James said.

"I'm aware of that, but to remove that much grime and stuff with one spell! If we were allowed to use our wands, it'd take us at least three spells to get it all off" Remus answered back.

"Anyway, I'll let you get back to it then."

"Couldn't you do the whole room for us?"

"Sirius! He can't, McGonagall would _know_ we had help then, you git!" James retorted.

"Oh, right. Thanks then."

"My pleasure. See you same time tomorrow night."

Trent then walked out of the room, leaving the four wizards with one less wall to clean.

* * *

The four of them made their way back into the dungeons for their second, and final, night of detention. 

"So, how many did we get done last night?"

"Three, Sirius. And that was only due to the help that Auror gave us."

"Too true, Remus. I wonder why he helped us. It's not like he had to or anything."

"Maybe he found out that it was…"

James' voice stopped when they entered the next dungeon to work on.

"Er…what happened?"

The others looked around at the dungeon in shock. It had already been cleaned.

"Maybe we already did this one" Sirius suggested before opening the door to the next room.

"We certainly didn't do _this_ one" Remus remarked as he poked his head around Sirius to find that dungeon had been cleaned as well.

Sirius nodded in agreement before the sound of someone clearing their throat was heard from behind them. The four of them slowly turned, hoping it wasn't Filch, and breathed a sigh of relief when they found Trent standing across the corridor.

"Like what you see?" he casually asked.

"You mean _you_ did this!" Remus exclaimed.

"I would have thought that was obvious" Trent replied.

"But why? Why are you helping us?"

Trent shrugged before replying "I don't know. Possibly because you four should be concentrating more on your studies than wasting time cleaning dungeons."

The four wizards blinked in surprise as they watched Trent begin to walk away.

"Wait!" James said, and Trent stopped.

"Thanks for helping."

"No problem. You might want to just sit and wait in one of the rooms though until your _detention_ is over."

They nodded their heads as Trent went on his way to continue his patrol. After he'd gone, Sirius turned to James.

"You know something. I'm beginning to like that guy."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. He doesn't appear to be like any of the Aurors I've met before."

"What do you mean, James?" Remus asked.

"Well, Aurors don't normally talk to anyone except their colleagues. But this guy's…"

"His name's Trent if I remember rightly" Remus interrupted.

"Whatever. He's different from the others. You've seen them around the castle, they're kind of scary the way their eyes dart around, as if trying to catch you for just _looking_ at them. But Trent doesn't seem to care about it."

"Maybe he's just trying to be nice" Peter suggested.

"Yeah, Peter might be right. You can't believe everything you hear, James" Remus added before the four of them made their way into the nearest dungeon to wait for their detention to end.


	5. Chapter 5 – Silence Reigns Supreme

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Greetings, I am back! Hope everyone enjoyed HBP as much as me…though Prisoner is _still_ my fav! I'm not going to change my Potions Prof's name to Slughorn though…after all, my fics were always AU anyway.

Oh, and yes, Sirius did whack James with a wet towel…and having been on the wrong end of that before, I can tell you that it does sting a bit!

* * *

**Chapter 5 – Silence Reigns Supreme**

A week had passed since the first full moon of the school year, with Remus nearly fully recuperated and up to date with his subjects. The four of them had settled themselves down at the Gryffindor table for breakfast when the morning influx of owls streamed in, much to the annoyance of Sirius.

"For Merlin's sake! Can't they tell that I'm hungry? I'm a growing boy!"

"Who just keeps on growing" James replied with a grin.

"Shut up, James."

James was about to respond when a scream was heard from the Hufflepuff table. Everyone's attention turned to that table as a fourth year witch jumped up and ran from the hall with tears trailing in her wake. Whispers started to break out, but Professor Dumbledore silenced everyone when he stood up.

"Miss Paterson has just suffered a terrible loss. I trust those of you who know her to respect her privacy. Please try to enjoy your day."

Remus just looked over at the empty chair and felt a pang of guilt in his stomach. He knew what she would be feeling right now. Remus had tried to push his feelings down, to keep them from bubbling over. He didn't want to break down in front of his friends, they wouldn't, no couldn't, understand what he was truly feeling. He remembered Trent's words on the Express; 'you won't be alone. Many more will not make it through this.'

Remus closed his eyes and wondered exactly how true those words would be this year.

* * *

This became a regular occurrence for the next fortnight, as more letters arrived, informing students of the news that Voldemort had struck 

"Have you noticed that Slytherin are the only table who _hasn't_ got one of those letters yet?" Sirius said as they sat down in their usual spot for breakfast.

"Of course, Padfoot. What did you expect from the house of Death Eaters in training?" Peter answered.

"We could write a letter for Snivellus!"

"Don't even think about it, Prongs" Remus growled.

"Sorry, Moony. It was just an idea."

"Death _isn't_ funny, James. Even Snape doesn't deserve something like that."

"But he keeps on telling you about what happ…"

"I know he does, Sirius. But I'm doing everything I can to ignore him. Despite that, _no one_ deserves a fake one of those letters."

"Remus is right. I wonder if anyone will get one today" Peter asked as they walked into the Great Hall for breakfast.

His question soon was answered when the owls flooded in again. Everyone waited in silence to see if anyone got one of the dreaded letters, but they were all stunned when a second year Slytherin wizard stood up and bolted out the Hall.

James just turned to Sirius and Peter, "I guess that blows your theory about Slytherin."

Peter nodded in reply, while Sirius just shrugged before helping himself to some sausages and toast.

* * *

"So, what do you reckon it'll be like, having that Auror teaching us?" James asked his friends as they vacated the Charms classroom. It was mid October, and Professor Flitwick had announced that Trent would be taking a class in two weeks time. 

"No idea. Don't even know what he's going to teach to be honest" Sirius replied.

"Probably some basic defence stuff. I mean, he is an Auror after all."

"Good point, Peter. Except for the fact this is Charms, and not Defence Against the Dark Arts. Besides, apart from disarming and stunning, is there really that much he can teach us?"

"There's quite a bit he could teach us, James. I mean, things like stealth…"

"Which we have down pretty well, Remus" Sirius cut in with a grin.

"Perhaps so, but there's more to being an Auror than just defending yourself with a wand. Maybe that's what he'll show us."

"What, muggle martial arts? C'mon Remus, I mean, yeah, it might be good to learn, but magic can do much more damage."

"I'm aware of that, Sirius. I'm just throwing a few ideas out there."

Sirius shrugged. "Well, I guess we'll find out in a month. After all, that is when he's going to start. How's things going with Lily?" he asked James.

"Not too bad. We're kind of in a holding pattern."

"Meaning what exactly?" Peter enquired.

"We're still friends, nothing more."

"And you're ok with this?" Remus asked.

James winced a little. "Well, at this stage, yeah. She's agreed to go to the next Hogsmeade weekend with me though."

"Let me guess, Madam Puddifoot's again?" Sirius casually remarked with a grin.

James winced again before nodding. "I know it's a bit feminine…"

"A bit? You are kidding me, right" Sirius snorted, before pushing the door open to enter the Great Hall for lunch.

"All right, so it's _quite_ feminine. But I don't want you three hanging around."

"What, do we look like we'd _want_ to go there when Zonko's and Honeydukes are just down the street?" Peter asked.

"C'mon guys, please. I don't want to stuff this up."

The other three grinned at this before seeing James' sincere and hopeful look on his face. Sirius, Remus and Peter quickly huddled together at the table to make their decision. They broke apart and left Sirius to do the talking.

"Ok, Prongs. We'll leave you and Lily alone that weekend. But we want a _full_ account the day after!"

James looked aghast at this and quickly shook his head. "No way! I'm not agreeing to that!"

The other three started laughing before James realised that Sirius had been joking.

"Very funny you three. Remind me to never tell you anything again."

"You should've seen your face! I never knew your eyes could get that wide!"

Sirius and Peter burst out laughing again. The other people in the hall looked over at them, but went back to eating when they saw who they were.

"So, that's the first weekend of December then" Remus said to James as the other two were still trying calm down from their laughing fit.

"Yeah, it is. Thanks for agreeing to this, Moony."

"No worries, James. Besides, contrary to what Sirius might think, I reckon you two would look quite good together."

"Cheers Remus. How are things going with Petunia?"

Remus stifled a laugh. "I can't believe you're still going on about that. I told you that I'm not interested in her."

"Then have you told her that yet?"

"I'm still trying to find a way to do that. I don't want to hurt her feelings…"

"Yep, that's our Moony. Always putting others first" Sirius interrupted, now over his bout of laughter.

"I'm never going to live that down, am I" Remus sighed as he helped himself to some juice.

"Actually, Sirius told me quite the strangest thing" James piped up after a short silence.

"Oh, what about?" Peter asked.

"He said that the reason you're not interested in her, Remus, is because you…"

James was cut off as Sirius cuffed him on the back of his head.

"Ow! Dammit Sirius, what'd you do _that_ for!"

"You know perfectly well why, Prongs" he growled.

James glared and rubbed the back of his head. "Fine, you ask him if it's really true then."

Sirius glared back, before leaning over and whispering into Remus' ear. After he'd finished, Remus just nodded.

"Did I just miss something?" Peter asked.

"I'll tell you…"

"You will not, Prongs!" Sirius hissed. "I'll tell you at Hogsmeade, Peter."

"Ahem. I think that since this concerns me, _I_ should be the one to fill Peter in" Remus gently said, frowning between James and Sirius who sheepishly nodded before turning back to their lunch. Remus then quickly told Peter about what Sirius had suggested about werewolves being quite 'instinctive' when it comes to being in relationships. He then glared at James and Sirius before addressing the three of them.

"While that is one reason, it most certainly isn't why I'm not interested in her."

"Oh, then what is the reason?" Sirius asked as sweetly as possible.

Remus then gave him his best death stare, and watched with amusement as Sirius quickly backed down.

James then leant over to Peter and quietly said "I think that means he isn't going to tell us."

Peter nodded and added "at least, not anytime soon. Are we doing anything for Halloween?"

"Not sure yet. We most likely will, but we'll probably discuss it a couple nights beforehand."

"We most certainly will. Speaking of pranks, you reckon that Auror figured out it was us who did it on the opening feast?"

"McGonagall made sure he did…" Remus started, but James cut him off.

"Actually, she only gave us detention for the food fight. To tell you the truth, Sirius, I _highly_ doubt he'll figure that out" James replied before helping himself to another sandwich.

* * *

The four of them settled down at the far end of the Gryffindor table keen to discuss what havoc they could cause during Halloween. James noticed that Remus seemed a little down and asked him what was wrong. 

"Nothing James. Just the usual thing with...you know."

"Yeah, that furry little problem. Are you sure though, Remus? Because you don't normally look this…well, troubled."

Remus knew James meant well, but he didn't really feel like telling any of them what was wrong. He knew they wouldn't understand how he felt after his parents had been taken away. It had taken him a full month to come to terms with the fact that he had nowhere to go for Christmas, since his grandparents were going on holidays to France. And while James had owled his parents to ask if Remus could stay with them, which they agreed to, he knew it just wasn't going to be the same.

'No one knows how I really feel' he thought before sighing. "Don't worry about me, James. A lot of things have happened to me in the last few months, that's all. So, what have those two decided to do tomorrow night?"

"Well, now that you've _finally_ decided to join in, we were just going over some ideas. You're normally pretty good with timed jinxes, so if you've got any ideas, feel free to jump in" Sirius told him.

Remus nodded before the four of them started to plot what they could do tomorrow night for the feast. They didn't realise that a certain Auror had been watching them quite closely.

Trent looked over from his corner in the Great Hall watching the students carefully. Since it was the night before Halloween, he had a feeling that the Marauders would be up to something. He had figured out that it had more than likely been those four that had pranked him the night of the opening feast. He smiled as he fondly remembered his own school days; so carefree, so peaceful, so…quickly over. He sighed as he looked over at the Gryffindor table and spotted the four teens in conversation with each other.

Trent smirked as an idea formed in his mind. It was payback time. Trent then discreetly waved his wand, casting a silencing charm on everyone in the room except for the Marauders and the Professors. When the whole room fell silent except for the four plotting Gryffindors, everyone's attention turned to them. Remus noticed it first and the others soon realised that everyone was looking at them with varying degrees of spite. They glanced around confused, until McGonagall stood up.

"BLACK! POTTER! LUPIN! PETTIGREW! DETENTION!"

"What did we do?" Sirius asked the others.

"I really don't know" James answered honestly.

Trent grinned as he then lifted the charm.


	6. Chapter 6 – Mischief Malady

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Well, he had to get them back really, besides I said this in Dormant Power! If you're clever, you'll probably figure out what happens in this chapter just by the title.

* * *

**Chapter 6 – Mischief Malady**

As Remus, Peter, Sirius and James were making their way back from their third consecutive night of detention with McGonagall, they were still trying to figure out what happened.

"I don't understand it. If we get caught, it's always been _after_ the prank, not before!" James exclaimed.

Peter nodded in agreement. "Yeah I know. Did you see the way everyone was looking at us? It was creepy, kind of like they knew exactly what we were planning."

"I agree, Peter. Someone must have found out what we were doing" Sirius added.

"How could that happen though? I mean we hadn't really discussed anything until the feast, remember" Remus argued.

As they walked in silence they came across a familiar figure walking in the opposite direction.

"Evening gentlemen. Bit late to be strutting around the halls isn't it?"

"'lo Trent. Just back from detention, that's all" James replied.

"Ah, I see. Before or after?"

"What are you talking about?" Sirius asked the Auror.

"The prank. Were you caught before or after it?"

"How did you know about the prank?" Remus asked somewhat accusingly.

Trent smirked, "let me think. Why would all four of you be put in detention for? Hmm, nope can't think of any _other_ reason! Oh, and I was also there."

James grimaced, "fine, we get your point. It was before the prank, we'd only just started to plan it."

Trent let out a low whistle, "talk about a rough break. Oh well, I'm sure you'll come up with something else."

The four young wizards nodded, and Trent continued on his way. Just before he rounded the corner, the students heard him call out, "it's amazing what one can do with a mass silencing charm, isn't it."

All four faces dawned in realisation.

James just shook his head, "oh _that's_ it. No one pranks us and gets away with it! He's _so_ dead!"

* * *

"Oh, I'm just _so_ angry! How could he do that to us!?" Sirius nearly yelled as they entered the Head Students' common room. 

"You don't think he figured out it was us who pranked him at the starting feast, do you?"

"If he has, Moony, he certainly waited for his moment. Good thing the map always tell us where he is!" James replied.

"So what should we do?" Peter asked

"I think we should do this the old-fashioned way. Maybe if you guys distract him from one of his patrols, I might be able to come up with something" James answered.

Remus looked concerned, "what if he takes it the wrong way? He is an Auror, he might arrest us or something!"

"Quit worrying about it, Moony. Trent wouldn't do that to us. He'll see the funny side…eventually. Any idea what we can do to get him back?"

Sirius, Peter and Remus all shook their heads, before deciding to think about it later.

* * *

"Now I shall hand you over to one of the Aurors posted around the school. Some of you may know him already. Please welcome Mr Trent Fuller." 

Polite applause filled the classroom as Trent made his way to the front of the room.

"Thank you, Professor Flitwick. Now the reason I have been asked to take this class, is that you will be learning about the Patronus charm. I shall begin…yes, Mr Lupin, you have a question?"

Remus nodded, "well sir, we got taught about that charm last year in Defence class. Why are we going over it again, and why in _this_ class?"

Trent smiled, "you said it yourself. You got taught _about_ the charm. You haven't actually cast it before. Am I correct?"

The young werewolf nodded as he understood what Trent was saying.

"All right then. As to why I'm going over this in Charms, and not Defence, your Headmaster decided that. He didn't mind which class it was taught in, only that he preferred it to be taught before the holidays. Since you have all studied the charm before, you should be able to tell me the most obvious reason this charm is being taught."

Lily raised her hand, along with Remus. Trent nodded at Lily to speak.

"It's the only spell that can nullify the effects of Dementors and Lethifolds."

Sirius glanced over at Lily and muttered "show-off" under his breath. Unfortunately for him, Trent heard him

"True. Mr Black, perhaps you'd like to elaborate?"

"Ah, well…"

"Or maybe in future you'd like to keep quiet. Mr Lupin, help him out please."

"Since the Dementors aren't under the Ministry's control anymore, we're being taught how to cast it so we can defend ourselves" Remus said, and glanced somewhat sheepishly at Sirius.

Trent nodded. "Exactly. Now there are a couple of reasons why this won't be easy to teach. The first is that not all wizards and witches can produce a Patronus. The second, Mr Snape, would you care to venture a guess?"

"There are no Dementors to practice on" Severus sneered.

"Almost right."

Sirius and James shared a gleeful look as they saw the somewhat shocked look on Snape's face before Trent continued.

"Another reason, anyone?"

No one said a word. Remus and Lily were both concentrating furiously, trying to come up with an answer.

Trent shrugged, "I didn't expect any of you to get it. The other reason is that not everyone's Boggart is that of a Dementor. Therefore not everyone would be able to practice on it."

Trent then looked at Severus before continuing, "so, you see why your answer was nearly correct, Mr Snape? While you were meaning a _real_ Dementor, I am talking about a Boggart-Dementor. Hence it is _possible_ to practice, just not _practical_."

Severus nodded. Trent then went on to explain how the charm is to be cast, that you have to focus on the happiest memory you can think of. How not everyone can produce a fully-fledged Patronus. Sirius rolled his eyes, and noticed Remus scribbling away frantically on a piece of parchment.

"Psst, Moony! What're you doing?"

"Writing. What does it _look_ like I'm doing, Padfoot!"

"Alright, jeez, no need to snap at me! I was just wondering why, that's all."

"NEWT's, Padfoot. NEWT's."

"Padfoot's right, Moony, they're ages away…" James began.

"And this will most likely be on them! So if you're finished, please let me concentrate!" Remus quietly snapped back.

They were brought back to the class when Trent spoke.

"Mr Potter, would you please come up here."

James stood up and made his way to the front of the classroom.

"Thank you. Now, I want you to focus on your happiest thought please. Then say the incantation."

James nodded. He tried to think of the happiest thing that he could remember. He thought about getting his first broom. Then about the Hogwarts letter. Meeting Sirius, Remus and Peter. He then smiled as he singled out the first time Lily told him that she'd go with him to Hogsmeade.

"Expecto Patronum!" James shouted.

A faint wisp of silver came from his wand, but nothing else. James looked immensely disappointed, but Trent beamed.

"Very good! Wonderful for your first try."

"What do you mean? Nothing happened! How can you say it was _very_ _good_?!" James replied, frustrated at Trent's cheerfulness.

"You're wrong, Mr Potter. You managed to produce a faint mist, much better than my first ever attempt."

"Well, that's not going to drive anything back!"

"Perhaps not. But in time, you should be able to do this; Expecto Patronum" Trent responded, and a bright silver flash burst from his wand, which quickly formed into…

"A kangaroo! Your Patronus is a kangaroo?!" Lily exclaimed.

"Do you have a problem with that, Miss Evans?" Trent replied, as the silver kangaroo dissipated in a cloud of silver.

Lily shook her head, and kept quiet.

Trent nodded. "Not everyone's Patronus is the same. Each takes the form of something which is very personal to the caster. For all I know, Mr Potter's Patronus might be that of a werewolf!"

Trent chuckled, along with most of the class. The only exceptions were Remus, Sirius, Peter, James, Lily and Severus.

"Now that's all I have time for today. Thank you for listening, and have fun on the weekend!"

* * *

"Do you think he knows?" Remus said as they sat around in the Head Students dorm. 

"About your furry little problem?"

Remus nodded, while Lily stifled a giggle which Sirius noticed.

"What's so funny, Lily?"

"It's just that the other witches all think that Remus has a pet rabbit whenever James says that" she explained with a small smile on her face, while the Marauders could scarcely contain their laughter.

"How could he know? I mean he's only been here what…two and a bit months?" James reasoned after they had settled down.

"James is right, Remus. No one could figure it out _that_ quickly" Lily added.

Remus nodded, "I know. It's just…there's something about him that doesn't quite make sense."

"What do you mean, Moony?" Peter asked.

The young werewolf looked thoughtful before answering. "I'm not sure. I just feel…I don't know, _safe_ when he's around. It's almost like I can _feel_ his magic or something."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. It's like nothing can harm you when you're around him. Let's just try and forget about it right now. I believe we have some pranks to do" Sirius said, a grin playing on his face.

"Right you are, Padfoot" James grinned back.

"Just don't do anything to Severus though. I don't know what Dumbledore did, but I'm not sure how much it will take before he tells someone about what you get up to every month, Remus" Lily reminded them.

"No worries. We were going to do the whole Slytherin dorm anyway, not just Snivellus!" Sirius remarked.

Lily glared, but Sirius ignored her before summoning James' invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map. Once this was done, the four of them left Lily at the table and headed off outside to begin their latest prank.

* * *

The four of them were quietly making their way back from just outside the Slytherin common room beneath James' invisibility cloak. Not an easy task for the four of them, but they were managing quite all right. 

"C'mon guys, this might be one the best prank we've ever done!"

"Totally agree, Prongs. I can't wait to see Snivellus tomorrow!" Sirius nodded enthusiastically.

"We'd better move a bit quicker. The map says there's an Auror coming our way" Peter urged.

"Who is it, Wormtail?"

"Trent" the small blond-haired student replied.

"Bugger. Well, good thing you have this cloak then, isn't it Prongs!"

"Shut it, Padfoot. It's a bit small now we're in our final year. You should lose some weight, Merlin knows you eat too much!"

"Get nicked, Prongs! You eat nearly as much as me!"

"Quiet you guys! Save it for when we get back to…"

Remus was cut off when Peter tripped on one of the trick stairs and a clatter echoed throughout the stairway as he dropped his wand. The four friends froze, then looked at the map again. The dot labelled 'Trent Fuller' now made its way towards them much quicker than before.

"Accio wand! Quick Moony, erase it!" James urged as Peter's wand came hurtling towards him. He caught it and handed it back to Peter.

Remus nodded and raised his own wand before whispering "mischief managed!"

The map slowly dissolved, and before long looked like any other blank piece of parchment, which Remus hastily stuffed into his robe. They then turned their attention to the bottom of the stairs where Trent now stood, looking around trying to determine what happened.

"He'll never find us!" Sirius grinned.

"I wouldn't count on that, Padfoot. He's not an Auror for nothing" James replied.

"Are you guys _trying_ to get us caught!" Remus softly replied.

They saw Trent shrug his shoulders, before speaking,

"Alright you four, the game's up. You know better than to sneak around at this time of night."

James grinned at the others. He knew that Trent couldn't see through his invisibility cloak, and there was no way any of his friends were going to give away the fact that they were here. He briefly wondered why Trent raised his wand, then looked horrified when Trent turned to exactly where there were hiding and smirked.

"Accio invisibility cloak!"

James felt the cloak fly off towards the Auror and realised they were in _big_ trouble.

"Oh…" James began.

"Crap!" Sirius finished.

"Please sir. I can explain. See…"

"I don't want to hear it, Mr Pettigrew. You should know better than to be wandering the halls at one in the morning. Turn out your pockets" Trent ordered, glaring at the four of them.

James looked at the others and nodded. Slowly the four of them turned out their pockets and Trent snatched the blank piece of parchment from Remus' hands.

"What is this?"

"Spare bit of parchment" Remus answered.

Trent raised an eyebrow, "really. Then you won't mind if I destroy it. After all, I'm sure your friends have plenty of spare parchment you can borrow."

James knew what he was trying to do; Trent wanted to gauge their reactions. James stole a glance towards Peter and inwardly groaned when he saw his friends' eyes widen in horror. Trent smirked as he saw the same thing before talking again,

"So, it's something more than that. I'm going to let you…"

Trent didn't get to finish as a new voice entered the fray,

"Students out of bed, at this time of night? Caught by an Auror as well. My, we are in trouble aren't we."

James closed his eyes in frustration as Filch slowly made his way up to where they were.

Trent turned around and faced the squib.

"Mr Filch, I was just escorting these four back to Gryffindor tower. They asked me for some lessons about what it pertains to be an Auror. Unfortunately, Mr Pettigrew here got caught in one of the trick stairs."

Filch glared at Trent, and was about to reply, but Trent cut him off.

"I know I should have informed you, and I'm sorry. However, I have confiscated something from them, and I trust you to put it away," Trent then turned back to the four students, "where meddling hands can't find it."

James saw Filch's eyes light up, and grimaced as Trent handed over the blank map. Filch then nodded at Trent before making his way back to his office. Trent then turned to the four young wizards.

"Now I don't pretend to know what that parchment was, but I will not cover up for you again. Relieve your friend from his plight, then go straight to your dorms. Mr Potter, I thought that you would know better, being Head Boy and all that. Good night gentlemen. Oh, I believe this belongs to one of you."

Trent handed the cloak to Sirius then spun on his heel and walked off, continuing his patrol. The Marauders could only watch in silence, listening to the echo of Trent's footsteps before slowly making their way back to their beds.


	7. Chapter 7 – Some Things Are Best Forgott

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

And here is the first explanation of one of Trent's 'secrets' that he told Remus about in Apprentice; vis-à-vis, how _did_ they end up in their defence classroom?

Suppose I should warn you; Remus gets a bit hairier than normal for a period in it (thank you to the HP Lexicon which gave me the hiccups from laughing too much for about three hours after reading those same words!).

* * *

**Chapter 7 – Some Things Are Best Forgotten**

"Sorry guys," Peter said as James, Sirius, Remus and himself made their way to the Great Hall the next morning for breakfast.

Remus sighed, "Don't worry about it, Peter. Besides, it could've been worse."

Sirius looked astonished, "Exactly what're you on about, Moony! That map was mainly your work! You did nearly all the charms on it, remember! How could it have been _worse_?!"

Remus managed a weak smile and replied, "I'm aware that I did the charms, Padfoot. But, he _did_ give us the cloak back. Besides, McGonagall or Tuero could've found us instead."

James nodded as the doors to the hall approached, "Good point. I hadn't thought of that. Oh well, let's see how old Snivellus is going this morning."

Sirius grinned, "One of your better ideas, Prongs."

Remus pushed open the door before gesturing for his friends to enter the hall.

They settled down at their usual spots and waited for the Slytherins to arrive. When they did, all the chatter in the hall abruptly ceased as the first Slytherin students made their way to their table. Instead of the normal robes, every single one of them were wearing maroon robes which flashed 'Gryffindor Forever' across their backs in large gold letters.

Needless to say, most eyes then turned to the four Gryffindors, and while Remus and Peter were able to keep straight faces, James and Sirius could not, and had taken to clutching their sides in laughter. They briefly heard Professor McGonagall say for the two of them to meet in her office during lunch, but then laughed even harder when Severus made his entrance.

Not only was he wearing the same robes, but his hair had been charmed a shocking shade of hot pink. He shot a scowl towards James and Sirius, but it wasn't just these two who found this sight hilarious. Soon most of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were joining the Gyrffindors in laughing.

"You two really need to figure out how to keep a straight face."

"Why? Come on, Wormtail, even McGonagall would have to agree that he looks better this way!" Sirius exclaimed after everyone had calmed down sufficiently.

"You know, he's got a point there, Peter," Remus mused, a smile playing on his lips.

"That is most definitely a pensieve moment," James agreed before they all settled down for breakfast.

"Except for the fact that you don't _have_ a pensieve, Prongs," Sirius grinned.

"Fine, how about a Patronus moment then?" James replied with a shrug.

"Actually, that wouldn't work either. A Patronus needs to be…"

"Nice going Prongs. Now you've got him in 'Professor Lupin' mode!" Peter moaned, while Sirius rolled his eyes.

They knew Remus wouldn't stop talking about this for a while, so they tried their best to look very interested in everything he was saying.

* * *

"I'm afraid I will be taking twenty points off you for that little stunt you played this morning."

"It was worth it, just to see Snivellus' face," James whispered and Sirius grinned at him.

"Make that twenty points _EACH_!"

"Oho, now _that's_ more like it!" Sirius grinned.

"_FIFTY_ POINTS EACH!"

Both teens gulped at this and James could almost see fire coming from McGonagall's nostrils the more she raised her voice. "Well, maybe we'll just keep our fat mouths shut then."

"That would be wise, _very_ wise, Potter. Now get out of my office," she replied, eyes narrowed and her voice dangerously low. The two young wizards grappled each other for a moment, trying to vacate the room first.

* * *

The next full moon quickly arrived, and as usual, Remus was led to the familiar site of the Whomping Willow. He hated having to do this every month, but knew after this year he would not have the protection the Shack provided. Even though he knew his three friends were silently following him, under James' invisibility cloak, he still felt so very alone. As he was led into the room, he looked around and closed his eyes as he remembered all the times he had transformed here.

He remembered his screams, desperate pleas for the pain to stop. He remembered two years ago, how ecstatic he was when his friends finally perfected their animagus transformations. He also remembered the feeling of numbness after he'd found out that Sirius had sent Snape to follow him. It took a Remus a long time to forgive Sirius for that, and even then, he still was disappointed that his best friend had betrayed his secret. He was brought from his thoughts when he heard a knock at the door.

Remus smiled as he realised his friends waiting for him outside. Why didn't they come in? Remus was very insecure about what he had to go through. His family had never been terribly well off, and since the transformations rip his clothes, he nearly always transformed whilst naked. He didn't want his friends to see the numerous scars that littered his body, and had pleaded with them to always wait outside the room until he had transformed. Remus had been asked by them which transformation hurt more, and he had answered instantly; changing back. The initial transformation into the wolf hurt plenty, but then having to go through it again a handful of hours later was pure torture.

He then grimaced as he felt the all too familiar sensation building within him. A sharp stabbing pain initiated from his left upper arm where he had been infected. Remus suddenly went rigid, his eyes changing from brown to yellow while his pupils dilated. He felt his limbs start to shake. He felt his bones splinter and snap, before the excruciating agony of them reforming in different positions. He tried his best to not make a sound but the pain was too much. Remus closed his eyes and screamed, his voice echoing throughout the small room.

Remus didn't know how much time had passed, but when he next opened his mouth to speak, a small howl escaped from his lips instead. Moony heard a knock, followed by a whine. He opened his eyes and looked over at the door, which was nudged open and a large black dog stood beyond the threshold.

Moony began to relax as he spotted his 'pack'. Padfoot then nodded his head towards the door, while Wormtail perched himself on top of Prongs' head. The four of them set off, with Wormtail scurrying outside to press the knot on the tree to stop it from smashing into them. The little rat then returned to his position between the antlers of Prongs and they set off towards the Forbidden Forest.

* * *

Prongs led the way back towards the castle, leading Padfoot with Moony bringing up the rear. Wormtail had abandoned his previous location on the stag's head, as Prongs used his antlers to clear their path of vegetation. It was Padfoot who had the honour of transporting Wormtail around. They were still quite some distance from the edge when Moony suddenly stopped. The others didn't notice until they heard him howl, then he raced past Prongs who turned to the others with a somewhat confused look on his face. Padfoot nodded and they both took off after their friend, leaving Wormtail doing his best to hold onto Padfoot's black fur.

They reached the edge of the forest and skidded to a stop with what they saw. There stood Moony, and with him was someone dressed in black. Prongs realised why Moony had run off; he could sense this person's presence. He was about to run over to protect them from being attacked by Moony, but found he didn't need to. He, along with Padfoot and Wormtail, watched in utter amazement as the werewolf slowly relaxed and lay down. Somehow, this person had not only prevented their friend from attacking them, but they'd also managed to get him to go to sleep. The person then silently levitated the young werewolf back towards the Whomping Willow, leaving Prongs, Padfoot and Wormtail no choice but to follow them.

Both Moony and the mysterious person vanished from sight, going down the passage beneath the tree. Prongs trotted over to Padfoot and nodded once. Padfoot lowered his head, and Wormtail scuttled off. Suddenly, the animals were replaced with the three young wizards, each sharing thoroughly confused looks.

"Er, what just happened? Who was that?"

"I have no idea, Prongs. We'll find out soon enough though. They won't stay with Moony all night, will they?"

Peter shook his head, "No, there's no point, Padfoot. I mean as far as I could tell, Remus was asleep. I didn't think it was possible to tame a werewolf, unless you're animagi like we are."

The three of them waited in silence and eventually a figure was seen emerging from beneath the tree. They looked over and spotted the students and made their way over to them. As the person drew nearer, James let out a gasp as he spotted a glint coming from the persons face. He only knew one other person who wore glasses…and dressed in black…the Auror, Trent Fuller.

As Trent reached the shocked students he let out a hollow laugh, "I guess I'm not the only one who has secrets, am I. If you want to know what I did, I suggest the four of you meet me tomorrow night outside your Defence classroom..."

"I'm not sure if he can come tomorrow," Peter interrupted with a look over to the tree.

Trent nodded. "Very well, the night after that then. Is nine o'clock ok?"

The three students nodded in agreement before watching Trent walk back to the castle gates.

* * *

"Right, so how are we going to get there without running into anyone else?" Sirius asked James who was lounging by the fire.

James shook his head. "No idea, we'll just have to chance it. It's half-past eight though so we may as well head down."

"Head down where? You should consider studying, you three. I know Remus has been," Lily said as she came into the common room.

"Oh, we were actually going to make a start on that. Remus said he was going to ask that Auror more about the Patronus charm, so we decided that we'd go with him. After all, safety in numbers and all that. Besides, he's still not feeling too flash after two nights ago, are you Moony?" Peter lied.

Remus looked at his blond-haired friend with a hint of confusion but nodded, "Yeah, that's right. I saw him a few days ago and he told us to meet him tonight at nine. So that's where we're heading."

Lily nodded, "Alright then. Don't stay up too late though. You're all still tired from your last adventure I'd imagine."

"Thanks Lily. We hopefully won't be too long," James replied.

The four of them got up, Remus having no choice but to grab a quill and a piece of parchment, and headed off to meet with Trent. The others had told Remus what had happened, and he was just as intrigued as they were. Since they no longer had the map, they had to rely on luck that no one saw them. It held and they found themselves outside their Defence classroom with ten minutes to spare.

They soon saw Trent approaching, and he nodded at them as they made their way into the empty classroom. Trent locked the door and put up a silencing charm before turning to face the four students.

He sighed. "Ok, what do you want to know?"

They all spoke at once, so Trent held up a hand to quieten them down. "One at a time, please. How about we go in alphabetical order? Sirius, your question first."

Sirius nodded. "Did you deliberately follow us?"

"No. Under the order of your Headmaster, we are now required to patrol the grounds at night. Two nights ago was my turn to do that. Remus?" Trent said, as he looked at Sirius before his eyes moved across to the young werewolf.

"Did…did you know…that…that that was me?" he whispered.

"Yes, I did. Peter, your question?" he said, which got him four astounded looks before Peter recovered enough to speak.

"Did…did Dumbledore tell you about Remus?" he asked

Trent shook his head, "No, I figured it out after I saw you three waiting for me," he replied before looking at James.

James looked up at Trent and asked his question, "How did you manage to not be attacked?"

Trent smiled and nodded. "Ah, I was wondering who would ask me that. Very well, you might like to take a seat, this could take a while" he answered.

The four boys nodded and sat down before eagerly awaiting Trent's story. He took a deep breath and grinned at them, "I didn't know you four could be this attentive. Sorry Remus, I've heard that you are, but not the other three."

Sirius and James made to reply, but Trent continued, "Alright, tell me what you know about the relationship between a werewolf and animals."

"We don't attack them. We only attack humans," Remus replied.

"Close, what's your second guess?"

"What do you mean? He's right isn't he? They don't attack other animals," Sirius answered.

Trent shook his head, "No, you're wrong. Werewolves _do_ attack animals, for two reasons. The first is if they feel threatened. The second is if they are from a different pack, and want to challenge the alpha. With me so far?"

They nodded, and Peter spoke up "But, there are no other werewolves here…are there?"

"No, quite correct, Remus is the only one, otherwise you'd be together with them. Let me ask you this, Remus. When these three first decided to go with you, did you attack them?"

Remus hung his head in shame and slowly nodded. He remembered the feeling of dread as he attacked his three best friends that night two years ago. He remembered trying in vain to stop himself, and how relieved he was when Padfoot and Prongs managed to restrain him.

"Do you know why you did?"

Remus looked up and shook his head, "I just thought it was because I was used to being alone."

"Precisely. You have never been part of a pack before, and therefore felt threatened by your friends' presence. Am I correct in assuming that you are the alpha?"

Again Remus nodded.

"That is one of the reasons why you haven't attacked them since…"

"But you haven't said how _you_ weren't attacked," James interrupted, getting the feeling that Trent was skirting the issue.

Trent politely smiled back, "I'm getting to that, James. You will see in a moment. Now, before I was cut off, I just told you _one_ of the reasons why you don't attack your friends. By all rights though, you should always attack them."

"WHAT! Why?" Remus asked, feeling quite confused.

"Because of what they are, Remus," Trent calmly replied. "You see, _you_ know that they're not really animals, _you_ know that they're humans, and therefore you should attack them. Do you know why you don't?"

The four friends shared a blank look at each other, and shook their heads. They had never thought about it before. James suddenly snapped his head up, "Hang on. How do you know that we're animagi? No one except for us four know that!"

"I'm not an Auror for nothing. I saw three animals, four including Remus. When I got back, you three were standing there. What else could I presume?"

James nodded, and Sirius was about to speak, but Trent cut him off, "Don't worry, Sirius. I'm not planning on telling anyone about it. I think it's an incredible achievement. When did you perfect it, and how long did it take?"

"We started late in our second year, after we found out about Remus' condition. It took us until fifth year before we could transform though," Sirius answered.

Trent just shook his head, "Amazing. You were _fifteen_ when you did this? That is very impressive. But I'm getting off track. As I said before, while _you_ know that they're not really animals, your wolf form does not. Can I correctly assume that Remus doesn't allow you to watch him transform?"

Again the four of them nodded, not quite understanding where Trent was going with this. "Alright. Now Remus, how difficult is it for you to keep _your_ mind after you've transformed?"

"Impossible," he dully replied.

"Can you figure it out yet?" Trent asked, a hint of a smile on his face.

A dawning of realisation crept over Remus' face. He looked up at Trent and slowly nodded.

"Good, care to enlighten your friends?" Trent asked, gesturing to the blank looks James, Sirius and Peter had on their faces.

Again Remus nodded, before speaking, "Since the wolf takes over my mind completely, he recognises you as my pack. You always transform before me, so the wolf hasn't seen you in your human forms. Therefore he doesn't know that you're not really animals."

James, Sirius and Peter all nodded in understanding. The wolf thought they were animals, and that was why Moony never attacked them since accepting them as his pack.

Trent had a small smile on his face. "Very good. Now I expect you to be thinking why you didn't attack me. After all, you did sense me, or you wouldn't have come after me."

Remus nodded, and lowered his head in embarrassment. He dreaded the thought of attacking anyone, particularly after the Snape incident towards the end of his fifth year.

"First off, you have no need to feel bad. You were only doing what comes naturally. Besides, you didn't lay a paw on me. You are not a monster, Remus. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Remus nodded, despite feeling tears starting to well up in his eyes.

Trent sighed but continued, "So, how did I manage to calm you down? Simple really, I talked to you."

"What? No you didn't, I couldn't hear your voice at all," Sirius answered.

"That would be because I was talking to his mind, Sirius. I am a telepath and could read his thoughts." Trent nearly snorted when he saw the four sets of eyes widen, "Don't worry. I certainly don't abuse that gift. I'm just telling you the truth. I spoke with the werewolf, and convinced him that I wasn't a threat. I told him that he must be feeling very tired, and to think about what would happen in the morning. I told him that he should get some sleep, and that he couldn't be expected to lead his pack if he kept tripping over his front paws."

Peter spoke up, "That was when we showed up. We saw Remus lie down. You then levitated him to the Whomping Willow," he then asked "how did you know to go there?"

"Ah yes, _that_. You remember me saying that I figured this out on my own, right?"

"You're not saying that someone _told_ you, are you?" Remus asked, feeling rather hurt.

"No, no. I did figure it out. I confronted Dumbledore about the prospect of letting a werewolf wander around the grounds once a month. He then told me about the real purpose of that tree. That is how I knew to take you there."

"Oh, well, that's ok then," Remus said as he relaxed a little.

Trent then withdrew his wand and looked at the four students. "Now, I'm sorry about this, but I have to erase your memories about everything I've just told you, and what you saw that night."

"WHAT! Why?!" all four of them demanded at the same time.

"I have my own agenda, gentlemen. It's not that I don't trust you, it's just I can't afford me being a telepath being leaked through the school."

"But, we won't tell anyone! We haven't told a soul about Remus! And he hasn't told anyone about us being animagi either!" Sirius exclaimed.

"That's not the point, Sirius. Tell you what, you let me do this, and I'll answer _any_ questions you may have after I memory charm you, regardless of topic. If you want, I can even give you additional training."

"You'd do that! Really?!" James said excitedly.

"Sure I would. In these times, I'd be only too glad to. What do you say?"

"What will you make us remember about what happened?" Remus asked.

"Simple, you will remember wandering around the forest, before heading back to the Shrieking Shack. You won't remember anything about me being there. As for your presence in this room, you will remember coming here for some additional training on the Patronus charm."

Remus nodded, then looked over at his friends. James and Peter looked to have already made their minds up, but Sirius was having doubts.

"How do we know that we can trust you? How do we know you won't totally obliviate us?" he asked.

"You can't. But I have kept your late night castle adventures to myself since I arrived here," Trent answered.

Four stunned looks greeted Trent who smiled in return. "Oh yes. I know that you four like to roam around the corridors. I still don't know how you manage to not get caught as often as you should, but then again you lot wouldn't be the pranksters you are if you did get caught in the act."

"You er, won't tell anyone…will you?" James asked.

"Of course not. I certainly wouldn't deny the next generation of pranksters their fun!"

"You…you're a prankster! Well that explains how you got us on Halloween! Why didn't you ever tell us?!" Sirius exclaimed.

Trent smiled back, "You never asked. But enough of that, I'll just have to tell you again after I do this…that is if you want me to."

"You mean you don't have to erase our memories at all?" Sirius asked hopefully.

"Oh no, I do. I just wanted to tell you the truth about it before I did. I also wanted to prepare you for when I do this. Not everyone gets told that they're about to be memory charmed."

Sirius eventually nodded his approval. After all, Trent had been honest with them about what had happened. And he was right, you normally don't get told in advance that you're about to lose some of your memories.

The next thing Sirius could remember was waking up in his Defence classroom. He looked around and saw his friends sitting next to him, all rubbing their eyes looking like they had been in a daze. He saw Trent sitting at the front desk, leaning back in the chair.

"I'm so glad you four managed to get here. You do know that not everyone can cast this charm, don't you?"

Sirius then remembered why they were here; Trent was going to give them additional lessons in how to cast the Patronus charm. Again, he briefly went over what he covered during the classes he took, before telling them to meet him at the Quidditch pitch on Saturday, after dinner.


	8. Chapter 8 – Settling The Score

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

As you'll find out, I was starting to run out of names, hence the need to reuse one. He's his imaginary older cousin, not his brother…you'll soon figure out who I mean. Oh, and yes it was rather easy playing on the whole 'Professor Lupin' thing!

* * *

**Chapter 8 – Settling The Score**

As the quartet made their way down to the pitch for their first training session with Trent, the conversation quickly turned to the Quidditch game that had been played the day before. Heating charms had been deployed around the pitch to prevent students and Professors getting sick (which was the reason Trent had said to meet there). It was Gryffindor verses Hufflepuff, and, as usual, it had been the Lions who came out on top. Despite their seeker, Aidan Lynch, not catching the snitch, the chasers, led by James, had been able to build up enough of a lead that it didn't matter.

"I still wish the snitch stayed hidden for a while longer, I didn't have the chance to beat my own record."

"Well, you _did_ miss three shots!"

"Shut up, Padfoot. And I didn't _miss_ them, they were saved. They have a really good keeper you know."

"True, Thomas Wood's not bad, is he" Peter remarked.

James snorted. "He's _a lot_ better than what everyone gives him credit for. For a third year, he's amazing! I _still_ can't believe he saved that last shot of mine!"

"You did manage to score eleven goals though" Remus reminded him.

"Which means, if I'd got those three, I would've beaten my record of thirteen from last year!"

"You can't have everything, Prongs. What do you reckon he'll have us doing tonight?" Sirius asked, changing the topic to their training.

James rolled his eyes and put on a mock thinking face. "Let's see. So far he's told us about the Patronus charm, the Patronus charm, and, oh yeah, the Patronus charm!"

"Shut up Prongs, you know what I meant! Will he get us to cast it at a target, or what?"

"No idea Padfoot. But I daresay that we're about to find out since he's coming this way" Remus answered as he spotted a figure moving towards them.

* * *

"Expecto Patronum!"

"Again"

"Expecto Patronum!"

"Think happy thoughts. Again."

"I'm trying! This isn't easy you know. EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

Again, James could only create a silvery mist and nothing more. Still, his was better than the others. Sirius and Remus could produce a very fine mist, but Peter was unable to get anything from his attempts.

James looked over at Trent and ran his hand through his messy black hair, frustrated.

"It's all about confidence, James. You have to truly believe that you can do this."

"I _have_ confidence."

"No you don't…"

"Yes I do! I have never been unable to do _any_ spell we've been taught, and I'm _not_ letting this be the first!" James interrupted somewhat angrily.

Trent sighed, "and there's your problem. You say you have confidence, but you aren't fully concentrating on the task."

"How do you know James can actually do this spell, sir?"

Trent snorted, "don't call me that, it makes me feel old! My name's Trent. In answer to your question, Remus, it's quite simple. The fact that James could produce a faint mist on his _first_ attempt indicates that he will most likely be able to produce a fully corporeal Patronus…if he concentrates."

"For Merlin's sake, I _am_ concentrating! You're asking me to do the _impossible_!"

Trent arched an eyebrow. "Impossible now is it? You just finished saying that you can do any spell you've been taught, but now this one's impossible? How curious."

James glared and then sighed, "what am I doing wrong? Why can't I do this? You said I have enough power to do it, so why isn't it working?"

"Any spell is only as good as the lack of pressure on the caster" Trent said.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That it's easier to practice spells than use them in a battle, James" Remus answered.

"That's obvious. Why'd you say that?" Sirius asked.

"Because only once you've practiced enough, will the spell become second nature to you" Trent replied.

He then looked at James and closed his eyes. "Would you three please leave us alone for a little while? In fact, I think you've had enough for one night anyway. I'll bring James up with me soon."

Sirius, Remus and Peter looked a little disappointed, but reluctantly got up and made their way to the doors of the castle.

After the three had left, Trent walked over to where James had slumped down on the grass in frustration.

"I know it's not easy, James. Just out of curiosity, what memory are you using?"

"The first time Lily said she'd go out with me."

Trent flopped down on the grass next to the teenager and sighed, "ah yes, young love. How I remember it so."

"I'll hex you if you're not careful. Ask Sirius about it sometime."

"You hexed him for saying that?"

"No, he kept on saying it, over and over. I got fed up and hexed him. He spent two days in the hospital wing."

"Darn, remind me to not get on your bad side! You got him good then" Trent said with a smile.

"You could say that. I just wish I knew how to get her to be my girlfriend."

"You can't force someone into something they're not ready for, James."

"What do you know about it!" James snapped back.

"About Lily? Nothing. About being in love though, I know _that_ feeling quite well."

"Oh, sorry."

"What for? You were only asking a question, that's hardly reason to apologise."

"Well, I did lash out a bit."

"Point taken, apology accepted. Do you know how I figured out I could cast my Patronus?"

"No"

"I was like you once. Thought I could do anything and everything, but this spell had me stumped. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why I couldn't do it."

"You obviously did figure it out. So how did you?" James asked.

"It's the memories you choose, James. The ones I was using just weren't strong enough."

"But that day…when Lily said yes, it was the happiest I've ever felt."

"That may be so, but it's not enough. Have a guess what memory I used when I first conjured my Patronus."

"I don't know you that well, so I can't really answer that."

"Fair call. I actually first cast it successfully against a Dementor."

"What! No way, really!" James said as he sat up.

Trent nodded, "yes, really. The memory I chose was the thought of not seeing my friends again. Just thinking about them, and all the times we shared. That is what made the difference. It wasn't just a single moment of happiness, it was a string of moments."

James hopped up and Trent looked over at him. He saw the steely determination in James' eyes, and knew he wasn't going to let this spell beat him.

"I'm going to try that then" he said.

Trent got up as well. "Hang on a tick. Let me try something first. Remember though, this isn't the real thing, alright?"

James looked confused, "what are you going to do?"

"Help you of course" Trent replied with a smirk.

Trent then walked over to a rock and muttered a charm that James couldn't quite hear. He saw the rock grow in size, and assumed that Trent was transfiguring it into something. That something soon took the shape of a person, long black robes billowing despite the fact that there was no breeze. The person then made its way over to James, who felt his insides freeze and voices start to appear within his mind.

James had never felt like this before, he couldn't remember the last time he felt so scared. He backed away, and soon found himself against one of the Quidditch posts. He panicked. He could hear Remus' anguished screams every time he was forced to transform. James raised his wand as he pictured the day they told Remus that they didn't care about him being a werewolf.

He then remembered how delighted Remus was when they perfected their animagus transformation. His friends meant everything to him. That thought firmed in his mind as he pointed his wand at the advancing figure.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" he bellowed.

With a burst of brilliant silver light, a shape leapt from the wand and advanced on the now retreating figure. Suddenly, the person disappeared and the voices inside James' head were no more.

He heard a voice from his left, "told you that you needed confidence. Well done, James."

James nodded, still shocked with what happened. "What in Merlin's name was _that_?"

Trent smirked at the young wizard. "_That_ was a Dementor."

"You transfigured a rock into a Dementor?"

"Yes, I did."

"WHAT! But…why?"

"Because I knew you could do the spell. You just needed the right encouragement."

"Well, I now know what my Boggart will turn into!" James said, his heart rate slowly coming back to normal.

"That's good. You'll be able to practice more then. Have you studied Boggarts yet?" Trent asked, handing James some chocolate, which he gratefully accepted.

"Yeah, but we haven't actually faced one."

"Hmm, I know what we're doing next time then," Trent then smiled, "you really would trust Sirius with your life, wouldn't you."

"Of course! How do you know that?"

"Because ones Patronus takes the form of the thing they associate most with protection" Trent said, before gesturing to the glowing silver dog prowling around the pitch.

As James looked over, Trent quickly cast a light memory charm so James would forget that Trent knew about Sirius being an animagus.

James didn't notice the charm, his mouth hung open as he whispered "Padfoot!"

* * *

The next night had the four young wizards finally deciding how best to get Trent back for his prank on them at Halloween. James hadn't yet told them about his Patronus form, but had decided it could wait until after their revenge. They had cornered Trent during one of his patrols and Remus began phase one of their payback; the distraction.

"Why did you do that to us? You cost me a weeks worth of quality study time!"

"Remus, is that all you were worried about? Missing out on a few nights of NEWT study?"

"Darn right it was, Sirius! In case you haven't noticed, they're called Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests for a reason!"

"Alright, no need to snap at me, I was only asking!"

"Hey, I was talking to you!" Remus suddenly exclaimed as Trent used this time to try to sneak away. He stopped when Remus said this however.

"Well, you _were_ talking to Sirius. You want to know why I got you back for the starting feast incident. Does that answer it?"

"H…how did you know that was us?" Peter asked.

Trent turned around and shrugged. "Who else could it have been? You four were trying desperately to get me to leave your carriage on the Express so you could plan something. You obviously wanted me to pay for lost time!"

"Well…um, that's not quite right."

"Oh shut up, Peter. That was the exact reason we did it."

"I didn't mean that Siri…hey, he's getting away!"

Trent groaned and decided against trying to outrun four wizards, who each were armed. He turned around and faced them again.

"What do you expect me to do? Sit around and watch you four argue amongst yourselves all night? I have more important things to do, you know."

"Don't worry, we won't keep you long. No one's ever managed to do that to us before."

"While I accept your praise, Sirius, I'll have you know that I made a fair prankster in my day."

"Really! What'd you get up to?"

"Nothing too much, James. Our best prank was similar to the one I did on you four. Only we did it to the entire school, Professors included. It took a whole day before anyone could break the spell, it was great fun!"

"Did you guys have a name?" Sirius asked.

"Well, we had nicknames…"

"What was yours?" James interrupted.

Trent smiled fondly as he remembered his days at school. "Dingo. My nickname was dingo."

"What's a dingo?" Peter asked.

"It's a cross between a dog, a wolf and a fox" Remus answered.

"Quite right. Does this end our pleasant little _chat_ now gentlemen? I really should start my patrol."

The four students nodded and Trent walked off. James then raised his wand and pointed it at Trent. He muttered a jinx he'd found in one of Remus' books he'd borrowed from the library. He wasn't prepared for when Trent turned back around and glared.

"Alright, James, tell me. Which version of that did you use?"

James grinned back, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Trent continued glaring at him. "How long should I go down and be part of your Herbology classes. I know what jinx you used, I want to know how long you made it to last."

"Maybe a day. Dunno really, I can't quite remember which one I used now."

"For your sake, James, it had better only be one day. I might have a little chat to Lily about you wanting to…"

"NO! Don't do that! Fine, I used the day one, happy now!" James pleaded. He didn't want Lily to know how badly he wanted her to be his girlfriend, and he certainly didn't want anyone _else_ telling her.

"Let me think. Am I happy that I'll have a tree growing out of my head for a day…hmm, NO!"

"James, just remove it."

"He can't, Peter. It's a timed jinx" Trent replied, not moving his glare from James.

"You know about it?" Remus asked.

"Of course, I did say that I was a prankster in my day, didn't I?"

Trent then glared at James for a final time before slowly turning around and starting his patrol. Fortunately for Trent, he was able to keep his face void of the laughter welling up inside him. He had wondered why it had taken the four of them _this_ long to settle the score with him.


	9. Chapter 9 – There’s Nothing To Be Nervou

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

I was obviously referring to a certain Mr Wood last time round. Also, there is a 'Lynch' as the Irish seeker in Goblet…but I actually hadn't planned it like that. Having said that, I have now changed his name from Nicholas to Aidan (as the HP Lexicon has that as his first name). It'd make him around 30 by the time that World Cup comes around…still young enough to be an International seeker I'd reckon.

And of course they were going to prank Trent back. Now this chapter was a little bit difficult to write…since it's the first bit of James and Lily together that I've written (it's not a lot…thank goodness!).

Er…reviews are _always_ welcome. They let me know what you guys think is going to happen, and if it's any good :D

Besides, if no one likes it, there is hardly any point in me continuing to post it up here, is there...

* * *

**Chapter 9 – There's Nothing To Be Nervous About**

The four of them were at the back of the large group of students currently making their way to the village of Hogsmeade. Lily was walking with them, while James explained what Trent had done after the other three had left.

"You mean he turned a rock into a Dementor!" Remus exclaimed.

"Yep"

"And you had no idea what was going on!" Peter asked.

"Nope"

"Your Patronus is _me_!"

"Yep"

"Why Prongs, I'm touched" Sirius said before sniffing, wiping an imaginary tear from his face in the process.

James just rolled his eyes before telling them that Trent would be letting them face a Boggart next time, provided he could find one by then. They reached the village shortly after, and James and Lily quickly broke away from the other three and made their way to Madam Puddifoot's. James mentally grimaced when he spotted the frilly decorations around the windows, before opening the door and gesturing Lily to enter first.

They settled down at a table, and waited in silence for their butterbeers to arrive. James was trying to think of something to say, while Lily found it to be quite amusing.

"You know, I don't think I've ever seen you this quiet, unless it's during exams."

James smiled. "I know. It's just that I'm not exactly sure what I should be doing."

'Yeah, great going Potter! Like _that_ was what I should've said. Why the heck am I so nervous?'

"You aren't nervous are you, James? You weren't like this last year."

"Er, yeah, I know. Just thinking about Christmas. You know Remus is going to stay with Sirius and me."

"Really? That's wonderful. Has he talked about it yet?"

"No, but I don't want to push him into it. He'll do it when he's ready."

'I hope' he thought.

"You might be right. I can't imagine what he must've felt like after finding out. Remus is a really sweet person, and doesn't deserve what he's had to go through."

"No one does, Lily. But at least we haven't received any of those letters."

"Yes well, that's true" she replied.

They both sipped their butterbeers in silence again, until Lily sighed.

"James, I'm not sure how to say this. I don't want to take things too quickly."

James nodded, although he did feel a little disappointed.

"It's not that I don't like you, it's just that you've been such a prat for so long, and I'm only just now starting to get to know the real you."

"You've helped me a lot with that."

Lily looked surprised at this, but James continued "you helped me realise that I need to take things more seriously than I used to."

"You're saying I deflated your ego" she replied, and smiled at him.

James chuckled. "I guess that's one way of looking at it."

He then leant over and whispered "but we both know I still have a big head when I transform."

Lily smiled again before starting to laugh, something James always liked her to do. He liked seeing her happy, and thought to himself that maybe Trent was right; he didn't want to force her into doing anything she wasn't ready for. They were oblivious to the three wizards who were peering through the window looking at them.

* * *

"Can you see them yet?"

"Yeah, they're sitting by the far wall."

"Quiet you two, they might see us! Remember that we promised James we wouldn't hang around them."

"Stop worrying, Remus. We're not hanging around. We just happened to be passing by…"

"Bugger, did he just look over here!" Peter interrupted, quite worriedly.

"Um, no I don't think so. Although, you might be right, Remus. We should get going just in case" Sirius replied in a slightly panicky voice before grabbing both his friends and moving away from the window.

They didn't see James or Lily for the rest of the day, but they didn't really mind as they were too busy looking through all the other shops. Remus and Peter left Zonko's a short while later to go and browse around Honeydukes, leaving Sirius to drool at all the joke items.

The day passed quickly, and before long everyone was heading back to Hogwarts. For the Marauders, their attention turned to whether or not Trent had been able to find a Boggart for them to practice on.

* * *

The four young wizards again made their way towards the Quidditch pitch and were a little surprised to see Trent standing by a trunk. They became quite cautious when the trunk rattled and looked like it wanted to flee.

"Good evening gentlemen. Yes this is a Boggart. You all know the incantation to repel one, right?"

They nodded.

"Good, then we shall practice it right now. Peter, would you like to go first?"

Peter nodded and took his wand out. Unfortunately, Peter's hand was a little sweaty and his wand slipped out and hit Remus.

"Ouch!" the young werewolf cried, clutching his face.

"Oh Merlin! I'm so sorry Remus!"

Remus rubbed his cheek and handed Peter back his wand, "don't worry about it. Just…be careful next time!"

Peter nodded and apologised once again.

Trent then spoke up "how about we scratch that idea. I'll just give you a moment to think of your greatest fear, and how to make it less disturbing for when you cast the spell. Oh James, I want you to do what you did last time alright? Try to drive it back into the trunk, that way we can use it to practice on later, ok?"

James nodded in agreement. He then waited and wondered what his friends' greatest fears would be.

Sirius had his eyes shut tightly and his face screwed up in disgust. He muttered to himself "no, I'll never do that. I'm not doing _that_" as he pictured himself with the dark mark clearly visible on his left forearm. He wondered how he could make it less frightening when he had a thought. He smiled as he knew what he was going to do.

Remus also had his eyes closed, as he pictured the one thing that terrified him; the full moon. He smiled also as he thought about how to make the situation funny, and opened his eyes to see Peter still concentrating.

Peter was having a much more difficult time, imagining how to make his fear less frightening. He saw the dead bodies of his friends, and couldn't bear to think what he'd do if he lost them. Try as he might, he just could not think how to make the vision appear amusing. He gulped and opened his eyes…hoping he was ready.

"You ready, Sirius?" Trent asked

Sirius nodded, made his way over and stood a few yards from the trunk. Trent then waved his wand in the direction of the trunk, and the lid popped open.

James, Remus and Peter stood transfixed as Sirius himself came out of the trunk. The only difference was that this Sirius had a black tattoo clearly visible on his upper arm. James' eyes widened as he realised Sirius' greatest fear was joining Voldemort. He watched as the real Sirius raised his wand and shouted,

"Riddikulus!"

The fake Sirius then was replaced by an older version, dressed in a robe similar to that of Trent's. James smiled as he knew that Sirius wanted to be an Auror, who wanted nothing more than to catch Death Eaters, not join them.

Trent motioned for Remus to step up, and the Boggart-Sirius instantly shrank until a small silvery orb could be seen. James wondered what it was, until he saw shadows move across its path. He then knew what Remus' biggest fear was; the full moon. He briefly wondered what Remus would do to negate it, and wasn't disappointed when his friend cried,

"Riddikulus!"

The silver orb then deflated and started to fly straight towards Remus before wildly changing direction. James wondered what was going on but before he could do anything, Peter stepped up.

Remus' Boggart was forgotten as James found he was staring at himself sprawled out on the ground. He was dead. James felt his eyes widen as he looked over at Sirius and found him just staring at the dead body of his best friend. James then heard Peter squeak,

"Ri…riddikulus!"

James' body was replaced by Sirius'. James looked horrified as Peter once again said the charm and Sirius' dead body changed into that of Remus'. James was brought out of his trance when Trent tapped him on the shoulder.

"Would you help him out, James? Just stand between Peter and the Boggart, it'll change into a Dementor. Sirius and Remus will comfort him."

James nodded and quickly made his way over to Peter. He put a hand on his shoulder then moved between his friend and the dead body of Remus. The image changed, a black cloak rose, and once again James felt his insides start to chill. He raised his wand and thought of his friends, just like he had last time. He faced the Boggart-Dementor and bellowed,

"Expecto Patronum!"

The thick silver mist shot forth from James' wand, which quickly took the form of Padfoot. James then got his Patronus to force the Boggart-Dementor back into the trunk, which Trent then locked.

James then ran over to his friends, and found Peter still shaking with fear.

"It's alright, Peter. It wasn't real. It's just a Boggart."

"James is right. Nothing more than a stupid Boggart. We're here for you, Peter. We'd never abandon you" Remus added.

"I…I know. It's just…it's just that I see that all…all the time" Peter sobbed.

Sirius put his arm around Peter "try not to worry about it. As Moony said, we'll never leave you. We're a team, we'll always stick together!"

Peter wiped his eyes and sniffed, "thanks…thanks guys. Nice Patronus Prongs."

Sirius nodded and grinned, "I'll say. That looked exactly like me, even if it was silver and not black!"

James grinned back, and then turned to Remus, "what did you do to your full moon?"

Remus smiled shyly, "well, I…ah, made it deflate like a muggle balloon."

James and Sirius burst out laughing, and were joined soon after by both Remus and Peter. Sirius then spotted Trent levitating the trunk away.

"Hey, what're you doing? Where are _you_ going?" he shouted.

Trent didn't stop, but answered "I think we've had enough for tonight. I'll give this to your Defence Professor to look after."

"Oh no you don't, you haven't shown us yours yet!" Sirius replied.

Trent stopped and the trunk fell to the ground with a thump. He then looked over at Sirius before talking again,

"Why do you care what my Boggart is, Sirius?"

He shrugged. "I don't. But since you saw ours, it's only fair that we get to see yours."

"And how can you levitate that without a wand?" James asked.

Trent sighed, "I know a little wandless magic, James. I can do most first through third year spells without any trouble. As for you, Sirius, fine I'll show you. I'll warn you though; I'm not exactly sure what it will be. I've changed a lot since I last faced one of these."

Trent then moved away from the trunk. He closed his eyes and pointed his wand at the trunk. Everyone looked up as the lid opened and nothing came out.

Sirius looked at James who had the same blank face that he knew he himself had. Peter looked just as confused, but Remus looked stunned. His mouth was half open and his eyes were wide with shock. Sirius quickly turned back to see what Remus was looking at, but found he was only staring at Trent.

Trent let out a hollow laugh and a shower of sparks came from just in front of him. He then turned to the four students "well, it looks like we can't use _that_ one anymore."

James shook his head, "what was that? I couldn't see anything."

"Maybe it's something that we _can't_ see, like a thestral" Sirius answered.

"No, it wasn't a thestral."

"How do you know that, Remus? Peter asked.

"I've been able to see them ever since I came here. When me and my brother were attacked by…um, and he didn't make it. They're used to pull the carriages across the lake" Remus answered, hoping he had covered the night he was bitten and Romulus was killed, well enough for Trent to not suspect anything unusual.

"Oh, right. Then why did you look so shocked?" Peter enquired.

"Because…no I must be mistaken. That's not possible!"

"What's not possible? What's going on?" James asked.

"I did tell you that I wasn't sure what it would be" Trent said as he came up behind him.

He then added "what Remus means, is that my particular Boggart should not be possible to do."

"What was your Boggart then?" James asked.

Trent sighed, but it was Remus who spoke, "that can't be! I mean everyone has…"

"Remus, listen. I have changed too much, seen too much death during my time as an Auror. I wasn't even sure myself what my Boggart would be, but am just as surprised as you…"

"But what _was_ your Boggart?" James interrupted and asked yet again.

Trent looked straight at James, his face much more haunted than James had previously seen. It made Trent look far older than he really was.

"Nothing, James. You didn't see anything because I fear nothing, apparently."


	10. Chapter 10 – Retaliation

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Yup, I'm well aware of the order I put Peter's Boggart in…would have worked in Dormant too, if Remus hadn't been…well, you know (if you've read it!). Speaking of Remus, you should remember the bit about Boggarts…"without wands, please." Actually, that's in both the book and movie now that I think about it.

Also, I know the balloon thing only happened in the movie…I think Remus just makes the Boggarts we've 'seen' him face vanish.

And yes, I know JKR has said that Remus doesn't have a brother called Romulus…I guess I sort of have now done the same since he's…well, dead.

* * *

**Chapter 10 – Retaliation**

Trent was patrolling the halls when he spotted one of the classroom doors slightly ajar. He quickly checked the door for any spells, but found none.

He peered through the crack and could barely make out anything. He quickly drew his wand before whispering, "Torca Ignis."

Instantly the room lit up, and Trent walked in, his wand trained on a figure he saw cowering on the floor. He was rather surprised to find that the figure in front of him was wearing Hogwarts robes and had dirty blond hair.

"P…Peter? What are you doing here at this time of night? Where are the others?"

Peter slowly looked up as he recognised Trent's voice. "Th…they're asleep. You're not going to hurt me are you?"

"Hurt you? Why would I do that?" Trent asked, quite confused over Peter's actions.

"Well, for one thing, you...you have your wand pointed straight at me."

Trent had to admit that Peter made a fair point and pocketed his wand before offering to help Peter off the floor, a gesture which Peter declined. "Sorry, I just do that out of habit now I guess. So why are you here, Peter?"

"I…I'm not really sure," he replied.

"You should really head back to your…"

"NO! I don't want to go back there!" Peter interrupted, his eyes wide with fright.

Trent was concerned; he'd never seen Peter act like this. Then again, he hadn't seen Peter by himself either. "You have to, Peter. You can't stay awake for the rest of your life you know" Trent said, trying to lighten the mood.

"I know _that_, but…" Peter started, but couldn't finish as tears started to trail down his face.

Trent suddenly became much more worried, "What happened, Peter? Has someone hurt you? Please, I must know who did this to you!"

Peter shook his head and wiped his eyes, "N…no, it's not that. It's just I…I'm a failure!" he answered, and buried his head in his hands.

Trent's eyes widened in surprise. Whatever explanations he may have been thinking, this certainly wasn't one of them. "Who told you that?"

"No…no one," Peter sniffed.

"Then why are you so sure you are then?"

"Because I…I couldn't repel the Boggart last night!" he exclaimed before breaking down and sobbing again.

Trent sighed and waved his wand at the door, locking it. He then cast a silencing charm before turning his attention back to Peter. He sat down on the floor next to the young wizard and sighed again before speaking, "So, this is about what happened last night. Just because you couldn't doesn't make you a failure, Peter."

"But Sirius, Remus and James could all do it! Why couldn't I?!"

"You have to stop comparing yourself to them."

"But…but they're my friends!"

"Yes, and they'll understand. If they didn't, they never would have comforted you last night, would they?" Trent argued.

"They'll laugh at me."

"And how is that different to the way they normally act? James and Sirius laugh at each other most of the time."

"That's different. That's normally because they've just pranked each other," Peter snapped.

"Why in Merlin's name _would_ they laugh, when you've just shown them that the thing you fear the most, is them dead? That's _not_ a laughing matter, Peter."

"But they're so much better than me at everything!"

Trent sighed again. "Peter, listen. Yes, it's true that you don't have the same knack for picking things up quickly like James and Sirius have. It's also true that you aren't a bookworm like Remus is. But despite that, they still consider you to be their friend, Peter. They like you for what you are, not what you want them to _think_ you are."

"But…"

"No buts, Peter. They are _not_ better than you at _everything_. I've only known the four of you for a short time but I can already spot the main faults each of you have."

"They don't have any faults."

Trent chuckled before answering, "Everyone has faults, Peter. No one is perfect, trust me. James and Sirius share the same fault as each other. They don't bother to look before they leap. They both seem to be the type of people who would hex first, ask questions later. Remus thinks _too_ much. He probably likes to picture every possible outcome before choosing what to do. In a battle, he'd most likely end up dead before he could fire one spell off. And your main fault is that you have no confidence in yourself."

Peter nodded as Trent said the last part. And the more he thought about it, the more he knew Trent was right about all of them.

"Now, what's one thing James can do better than you three?"

"Quidditch," Peter replied, without thinking.

"What about Sirius?"

"Get chased by witches."

Trent chuckled and moved on, "And Remus?"

"He and Lily usually tie for top marks in classes."

"Ok, which now brings us to you. What's one thing you can do better than those three?"

"Nothing," Peter answered again without thinking.

Trent snorted, "How could I guess that you would say that. Let me tell you something I've noticed you do better than your friends. If James and Sirius have a knack for getting _into_ trouble, you have one for getting _out of_ trouble."

"I'd hardly call that a talent," Peter said.

"Maybe you wouldn't, but I'm guessing they would. You're able to think on your feet, Peter, very quickly too I might add. Imagine how many more pranks they could've come up with if they spent only half as much time in detention. If they could talk their way out of them like you can."

Peter grinned as he could only imagine the kinds of things James and Sirius would get up to. "You're right. How do you know exactly what to say all the time?"

Trent smiled before answering, "That's probably the one main talent I have. I can normally find the positives from any situation. A glass is either half-full or half-empty, Peter. I choose to look at it as half-full."

Peter nodded, before thanking Trent and making his way back to Gryffindor tower, thinking about what they had discussed. He knew Trent was right, that was the one thing he could do better than his friends. He felt a lot better having talked to someone different about this.

* * *

If Peter's confidence in himself slowly grew, so did James and Lily's relationship. It soon became common occurrence to see the two of them together. Sirius, Remus and Peter didn't mind this too much, although Sirius had been aching to get their map back to see exactly _how_ close the two of them had been getting.

It was mid-afternoon and James, Sirius, Remus and Peter were sitting by the fire in the Head Student's common room. Lily had gone to the library to do some Healing study earlier, leaving the four wizards to their own devices for a few hours. James thought it was time for a little discussion with his three friends.

"Right, what am I going to get her for Christmas?"

"I'm sure I heard her say that she wanted some stink pellets, Prongs."

"Really?! How much do they co…"

"Oh for Merlin's sake, James, he was only kidding!"

James' face dawned in horror as Remus said this and he glared at a grinning Sirius. "Oh, right. Mr Prongs thanks Mr Moony for his honesty, and would like to remind Mr Padfoot that he's an unfunny git!"

"Mr Padfoot acknowledges Mr Prongs' comment, but begs to differ. I thought it _was_ funny actually. I mean, imagine Lily's face if she opened your gift and found those!" Sirius replied with a dreamy look on his face. Peter meanwhile was trying his best to not laugh, but was failing miserably.

"Mr Prongs says to Mr Padfoot that no one asked for _his_ opinion, and would like him to shut Mr Wormtail up since he looks like he's about to burst something!"

While all this was going on around him, Remus had his brow furrowed in concentration. He then looked up at James. "You could write her a letter."

James stopped joking around with Sirius and grinned at the young werewolf. "Hey, that's a great idea, Moony!" he said before summoning a quill and parchment from his room. "Er, any ideas how to start this?"

"How about…"

"Shut up, Padfoot! Don't even _think_ about finishing that sentence!"

Sirius threw his hands up in mock surrender while Remus was again deep in thought. "Just tell her that you're looking forward to spending more time with her when you get back. And tell her that…"

"Whoa, slow down, Moony! I can't write _that_ quickly!" James said as he furiously scribbled down what Remus had been saying.

"That you're gay and you don't…"

"SHUT UP, PADFOOT!"

That was the final straw for Sirius and Peter who both fell off the lounge, roaring in laughter. Remus was having difficulty keeping a straight face once he saw both his friends had tears trailing down their faces.

James just glared at his friends before sighing, "Oh, sod off you two. Now, you were saying, Moony?"

"To tell her that you hope she has a wonderful holiday, and that you would never pressure her into anything she doesn't want to do. Maybe you could both see a muggle movie or something over the break."

As James was scribbling away, Sirius spoke up again, "Great idea, Moony. You'll need a chaperone, Prongs, and since Moony and me are staying with you…"

"Forget it, Padfoot! There is no way in hell that you'll be going with us. If we do go, it'll be by ourselves," James replied without looking up from his parchment.

"You should still get her something though, James," Peter said, finally throwing off his laughing fit.

"But what? What could I possibly get her?" James asked as he put down his quill.

"Flowers normally work," Sirius remarked.

"Shut up, Pad…oh actually, that's not a bad idea. Sorry Padfoot!" James apologised after realising Sirius had not been joking for a change.

Sirius just rolled his eyes and grinned. Remus however thought otherwise, "I don't think that's such a good idea, Prongs."

"Why, is that what _you_ got her sister, Moony?" Sirius casually asked, amid glares from Remus.

"Of course I didn't! I'm not interested in her…"

"Ah, but she _is_ interested in you. Maybe _you_ should write a letter letting her down gently," James said with a grin.

"For your information, I have already _done_ that," Remus snapped back. That had been the reason why he bought up the idea of the letter to James. Remus had given his letter to Lily, asking her to pass it on to Petunia when she saw her over Christmas. He then stood up. "Since you don't need _my_ help anymore, I might go to…"

"NO! Don't do that!! _Please_ don't leave, Moony! I'm getting desperate here!" James pleaded, getting off the lounge and falling to his knees to tug on Remus' robes.

Remus tried to look disapproving, but could scarcely hide his amusement. "Oh all right. Stop begging, you prat! I was going to suggest you get her a bracelet or something like that. Bit more personal than giving her flowers."

James looked up at his friend and his face broke out in an enormous smile. "Moony, I could kiss you! That's a _fantastic_ idea!"

"In that case, you'll _have_ to mention that you're ga…"

"SHUT UP, PADFOOT!" James roared, and again Sirius and Peter burst out laughing.

Remus was the only one who caught James mutter something about getting his payback next Potions class.

* * *

Professor Linus Tuero, Slytherin Head of House, was not having the best of days. His previous class had been disrupted when one of the fourth years mixed the wrong ingredients, causing a massive explosion which coated the entire dungeon with a thick green sludge.

That happened in the first ten minutes of class, which meant the rest of the time was spent frantically cleaning it up, which all the class helped with. He was fuming, and had taken fifty points off the unlucky house, despite it being his own.

He didn't have much time to dwell on it, as his final class for the day rolled in; seventh years. He watched as James, Lily and Sirius all sat as far away as possible from Severus and Walden Macnair. He was just starting to go over the way to brew the Draught of the Living Death, when a crash caught his attention.

He whirled around and spotted James standing up, his chair overturned, with his wand trained on Sirius.

"Right, that's it, Sirius. I swear, do that again and I'll…"

"What, James? Going to hex me are you?"

James glared and whispered something that no one caught. When everyone next blinked, Sirius' nose had been replaced with a snout. Sirius was seething, and responded in similar fashion, giving James not only a snout, but also a matching tail. James countered this, and Sirius soon found himself scratching like mad as James gave him fleas.

That was the final straw for Professor Tuero who abruptly brought their little display to a halt. "POTTER AND BLACK, IF YOU DON'T CEASE THIS INSTANT, I'LL _PERSONALLY_ SHOW YOU WHAT THE EFFECTS OF A WRONGLY BREWED BATCH OF THIS POTION WILL DO! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!!"

James and Sirius gulped and nodded their heads before sitting back down.

"Oh, no, I can't have you two here like that. Get to the hospital wing, _now_! Fifty points from Gryffindor for interrupting class. Also, you will now be required to provide me with, not one, but _two_ rolls of parchment on all you can find about this potion. GET OUT OF MY CLASSROOM!"

Sirius and James packed their things up and raced outside as quick as they could, glaring at each other all the way to the hospital wing.

* * *

"Where's Padfoot?"

"And Prongs, I haven't seen either since lunch," Remus added.

"Oh, they're both in the hospital wing," Lily announced.

"What? How did that happen?"

"They were both mucking around in Potions, Peter."

"Let me guess, they ended up hexing each other…again," Remus said with a slight shake of his head.

Lily nodded. "I don't think there'll be any everlasting effects though."

"Everlasting effects? Why, what did they do to each other?"

"I'm not sure, Remus. I'm not too up to date on the pranks you four like to come up with. I didn't recognise the spells. Seriously though, Sirius' was more serious than James', however they both didn't seem to be taking the class that seriously in the first place," Lily replied, a smile gracing her face as she said this.

"Um…right. C'mon Remus, let's go see if they're all right."

The two of them set off to the hospital wing to see their friends. As they were walking, Remus noted the look of confusion on Peter's face and waited for the inevitable question.

"Do you have any idea what Lily was on about with all the Sirius' serious stuff?"

Remus laughed before answering, "I think she meant that whatever they did to each other, James got off the lighter. She was just doing what we used to do with his name. I mean, honestly, how anyone with that name expects to go through their life _without_ hearing that joke is beyond me."

"True, we haven't done that in a while though…"

"That's because Sirius hasn't been all that serious in a while!" Remus interrupted with a grin.

Peter grinned back and nodded as they arrived at their destination. They pushed the door open and walked inside, dreading what they might find.


	11. Chapter 11 – A New Ride

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Well, I just reckon that Peter must have somehow figured out he was quite good at getting out of trouble. Remember, in this story he is still 'good'…and yes it was rather tough trying to write him like that. Also have to add 'Gone In Sixty Seconds' now to my list, just one quote…and if you're good at guessing stuff like that, I reckon you can probably figure out which one!

* * *

**Chapter 11 – A New Ride**

"You gave _him_ a tail!"

"And you gave _him_ fleas!"

Remus and Peter looked at each other and started laughing…again.

"Get over it you two. This is starting to get old" James said.

"Yeah. It was funny the first ten times, but not anymore" Sirius added.

This only gave Remus and Peter more incentive to laugh even harder, until both of them had tears trailing down their cheeks.

James glared at them before turning to Sirius. "Padfoot, this is ridiculous, let's go."

"Where?"

"I don't care. Someplace where no one is _laughing_" he replied, with heavy emphasis on the last word.

Sirius nodded and the two of them vacated the common room, with the laughter being cut off once they shut the portrait.

"Merlin, I didn't think it was _that_ funny" James said as he ran his hand through his hair.

Sirius shrugged. "Maybe we'd react the same as them if we were in their position."

"Maybe. Anyway, let's go. Any ideas where?"

"Actually, how about we sneak off to Hogsmeade? I wouldn't mind getting some supplies if you know what I mean."

James nodded "good idea. I'm starting to run low on butterbeer now you mention it. One-eyed witch passage?"

"Yeah, we'll just have to hope our luck holds and that no one sees us when we come back."

"Mmm, should've brought the cloak. Oh well, I'm not going back in there now, they'll _still_ be laughing."

"True, besides, we can always sneak our stuff back into your room when those two aren't there."

James nodded in reply as the reached the familiar statue. Sirius whispered the password and the two of them made their way down the passage towards Honeydukes.

Severus was walking down that particular hallway, making his way back to the Slytherin common room when he heard the grinding sound of stone on stone. He stopped by the statue and gave it a curious look before tapping it with his wand. Nothing happened so he shrugged and continued on his way.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in James' common room, Remus and Peter had finally recovered from their latest laughing fit and were currently discussing Christmas.

"You do realise that he'll kill us when he finds out what we've got him."

"Oh, come off it, Moony, Sirius wouldn't do that. You remember waiting for him in that place when he took the test, he'll be thrilled!"

"Yeah, but he'll still wonder why we haven't gotten him anything else" Remus argued.

"Good point, but the truth is we couldn't _afford_ to buy him anything else!"

Remus snorted before replying "you mean you and me couldn't afford anything else. James most certainly could."

"Whatever, the point is that Padfoot will be too excited to even care that he's not going to get anything else from us."

"Yeah, you're probably right, Wormtail. You reckon Prongs was telling us the truth about why he hexed him in the first place?"

"That Sirius was humming a certain song detailing what James and Lily would be doing up a tree? I most certainly would believe that, after all that's what Prongs sent him to the hospital wing for last year."

Remus nodded in agreement before the two of them headed back to Gryffindor tower to get ready for bed.

* * *

As James snuck off to grab the butterbeer, Sirius decided that he'd stock up on some firewhiskey. The final Quidditch game was a month after they got back from holidays, and Sirius wanted to make the celebrations even better than usual. He left the money on the counter as James came back and did the same for the butterbeer.

James looked quizzically at his friend before shaking his head in amazement.

"As Head Boy, Padfoot, I'll pretend I can't see what you've got!"

"What? Since I'm of age, I'm allowed to buy this stuff. Besides, don't you want to celebrate after beating Slytherin in the next game?"

"Of course I do," James scoffed. "It's just that firewhiskey is supposed to be quite strong, and I'm not sure…"

"So you're going to wuss out, are you? Don't you want to see Moony and Wormtail get rip-roaring drunk?" Sirius grinned.

James returned the grin and eagerly nodded as the duo set off back to Hogwarts.

* * *

The holidays came quickly, and with it, Christmas. Peter had come over a couple of days before, and the four of them had spent most of their time coming up with new prank ideas. Christmas morning dawned, with Peter being the first one up. He was sitting by the fire with a mug of hot chocolate in his hand, and started to drift back to sleep. After about half an hour, he was roused from his doze by a loud scream coming from upstairs. A few minutes later, Sirius and James came storming down into the living room.

"What is the meaning of this!"

"The meaning of what, James?" Peter asked, a look of innocence on his face.

"This!" Sirius said, pointing to his red and green hair.

Peter merely grinned at him. "I just thought it best for you to be in the Christmas mood."

"We don't need green and red hair to be in the Christmas mood!" Remus grumpily added, as he appeared in the room similarly affected.

Not long after, James' parents came downstairs and started laughing when they saw what Peter had done. Everyone scowled at them, except for Peter, who discreetly waved his wand, changing the two adults' hair, along with his own, red and green. This brought a smile to his friends' faces as they all congregated around the tree to open their presents.

It was in a midst of wrapping paper; books for Remus, pranking items and a new broomstick for James (the newest model of the Silver Arrows) and sweets for Peter, when Sirius finally found that he didn't have any presents.

"You didn't think we'd forget you, Padfoot" Remus said with a playful smile.

"But there isn't anything…"

He was cut off when James raised his wand and pointed upstairs. "Accio Padfoot's gift!"

A small package came whizzing down the stairs and James caught it rather nonchalantly in one hand before handing it to his somewhat confused friend.

"What's this?" he asked before opening it to find a key on a chain. "A key? Well, keys are good. But what's it for?"

His three friends and James' parents all smiled before leading Sirius outside into the backyard.

"Now Padfoot, close your eyes, we want this to be a surprise, all right?"

Sirius nodded at James before tightly shutting his eyes. Remus smiled at this before whispering the summoning charm to remove James' invisibility cloak. James then grinned and enlarged Sirius' present to its proper size.

"All right, Sirius. You can open them now" Peter said after the other two had given him the nod.

"What the…RUDDY HELL!"

"You like it?"

"Mr Potter, I'd be lying if I said I did. I ruddy LOVE it!" he replied in a stunned tone, looking in awe at the gleaming new motorcycle in front of him.

"We'll leave you to get acquainted with it then. Just be careful, muggle vehicles can be very dangerous."

"Don't worry, Mum, we'll be fine" James answered and watched his parents walk back inside the house.

* * *

"Er, are you sure you know how to ride that thing, Padfoot?"

"Of course I do, Moony. I've got my license for it, so I can ride it no worries!"

"You hadn't actually _ridden_ one before you took your test though."

"Oh stop worrying, Prongs. It'll just be like riding a broom!"

"And that's why I _am_ worried! You're hopeless on a broom!"

"Compared to you, Prongs, _everyone's_ hopeless on a broom!"

"Good point, Wormtail. But really, are you sure you know how to do this, Padfoot?"

"For Merlin's sake, Prongs, I just said that! Now, I'm going to get on this thing, so can you please kick away the stand thanks Moony."

Remus got an evil glint in his eye and nodded. While Sirius wasn't looking, Remus retracted the foot-stand and waited for Sirius to jump on his new bike. No sooner had he done this, the bike tipped over on its side and Sirius was left sprawled out on the ground, his three friends roaring with laughter.

"DAMN IT, REMUS! I MEANT FOR YOU TO WAIT UNTIL I GOT _ON_ THE BIKE FIRST, YOU GIT!" Sirius yelled, his face red with embarrassment.

Remus stopped his laughter to respond. "Whoops, my mistake!"

This only had the effect of making James and Peter laugh even harder, with Remus following shortly after, until they all had tears streaming down their faces. Sirius meanwhile was doing his best to glare at the lot of them, but was struggling to not laugh himself.

After a little while, Sirius had finally managed to control his new toy and was starting to get the hang of riding.

"Told you I can do this!" he beamed.

James just arched an eyebrow before smirking, "well, I'd hardly call going in a straight line _riding_, Padfoot. Let's see how well you can steer!"

Before Sirius could even react, James had conjured a log directly in front of the bike's path. Time seemed to slow down as they saw Sirius' eyes widen in shock before the bike hit the log, and its momentum ceased, unlike the person riding it. The young wizard was thrown over the handlebars, screaming, and tumbled through the air before landing unceremoniously on the ground.

A deathly silence followed until Sirius let out a groan, "I think I'm alright."

After realising Sirius was uninjured, James and Peter used each other for support to keep from falling over in laughter yet again. Remus had an amused look on his face as he walked over to his comrade.

"Padfoot, are you aware that you scream like a little girl?"

Remus then offered his hand while Sirius just rolled onto his back and stared at the sky.

"Oh shut up, Moony" he croaked out before accepting the hand and letting Remus pull him to his feet.

* * *

It was with a tinge of sadness that the four of them reached Kings Cross Station to catch the train back to Hogwarts for the final time. They were soon joined by Lily, who once again thanked James for his thoughtful gift of a bracelet, and also told Remus that Petunia understood and respected his letter. Again, Sirius tried to grill Remus about what the letter contained, but the young werewolf smiled and politely told him to keep his nose out of his, Remus', private life.

"No Aurors this time" Peter said, abruptly changing the topic.

"No, there are. But they're just patrolling the corridors instead of coming into our carriages," Lily replied before looking at James. "Did you finish your transfiguration assignment?"

James' eyes widened a bit, which was all Lily needed to see. "It's due next week! _And_ we've got our NEWT's coming up in a few months…"

"Which gives us _plenty_ of time to study for them" Sirius cut in, and both Remus and Lily glared at him.

"Are you really expecting them to be easy, Sirius? I can assure you they'll be _much_ more difficult than the OWL's were."

"Don't worry about it, Moony. We'll be fine" James told him but Peter looked a bit nervous, something Remus noticed.

"Yes Peter, I'll help you where I can" he sighed.

"Thanks Remus, I hate exams!"

"Don't we all" Sirius muttered, and Lily shot him another glare that Sirius ignored, much to her annoyance.

* * *

The weekend soon came around, and James, Sirius and Peter were all frantically trying to finish their transfiguration essay that, once again, they had left until the last minute. They had been constantly bugging Remus and Lily all day about it, to the extent that Lily announced that she'd be in the library. Remus envied her, since this meant his friends had all but ambushed him in the common room.

"C'mon Moony! You _promised_ you'd help us with this, remember!"

"I said no such thing! It's not _my_ fault if you three don't listen in class!"

"Actually, it is. We know you always let us borrow your notes, so it _is_ your fault" James replied.

Remus glared before grinning, "then maybe it's time to see what you'll do if you _can't_ use my notes."

The other three looked at him in confusion, before looking at each other. Remus used that particular moment to quickly cast a charm on all of his notes.

"_Please_ Moony, we won't ask you again, Marauder's honour!" Sirius begged.

Remus narrowed his eyes before sighing "fine. But this is the _last_ time it happens, got it."

Peter, Sirius and James quickly nodded in agreement before settling down to copy Remus' notes. As they were writing, Remus noticed James' confusion while looking at his notes, and put on his best poker face.

"Er, Moony? Are you sure that's right?"

"What? I just wrote down what Professor McGonagall was saying."

"Yeah, but it doesn't make any sense" Sirius said, scratching his head.

"Quite right. I mean look at this bit; the animagus portkey charm helps with the addition of floo powder. What's _that_ all about?" Peter added.

"It makes perfect sense to me" Remus mumbled, looking at his own notes to help hide his grin.

"And then that bit there; transfiguring a Dragon into a sock is easy compared to changing a matchstick into a needle. We haven't done _that_ before!"

"And the matchstick to needle transfig is easy. We did it in first year. You sure your notes are right, Moony?" James asked.

"YES! My notes are _perfectly_ fine. If you've finished criticising me, I need to go to the library to get some more books out to start studying for our Defence NEWT" Remus growled. He was quite pleased at his ability to hide his amusement at his friends' predicament.

"Alright, the transfiguration homework's due tomorrow though" James reminded him.

"I know, James. I've finished it. It's underneath my notes."

Remus watched gleefully as his three friends' eyes all lit up.

"Now, I _don't_ want you copying it while I'm gone, all right?" he asked with a glare.

"No, of course we won't, Moony. We wouldn't do _that_, would we guys?" Sirius replied.

"Not at all, you can take your time if you like, Remus. We'll still be here when you get back" Peter added.

"I'm sure you will be" Remus said with a grin, before heading off to the library. He had barely managed to close the portrait before he started laughing.

'Pity really, that that charm only lasts a day' he mused as he set off to the library to tell Lily to use the same spell on her notes in case they figured out what he'd done.


	12. Chapter 12 – There Is No ‘I’ In ‘Team’

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Come on, you didn't really think I'd forget about his bike did you? I did have Remus remember a little about it in BotE, and had him tease Harry in Dormant too! And did you guess the quote?

I know no one asked this, but I thought I'd answer it anyway. As to why I put in the bit about Severus walking by…read Prisoner of Azkaban again. He may not know how to open it, but I reckon he would have some idea that it's a passage.

* * *

**Chapter 12 – There Is No 'I' In 'Team'**

Meanwhile, back in the Head Students common room, Sirius, James and Peter were becoming increasingly baffled.

"Is it just me, or is none of this making _any_ sense whatsoever?"

"It's not just you, Padfoot. I've never seen his notes this…confusing before. None of it makes sense!" James answered.

Peter had already given up and was watching the other two trying to read Remus' assignment before he suddenly sat up.

"Oh, that _prat_!"

"What's up Wormtail?" James asked.

"Yeah, and who's a prat?" Sirius added.

"Remus is. Remember what he said before he left?"

The other two looked at each other and shook their heads.

"He said that he was sure we'd still be here. He must have charmed his notes so that we _couldn't_ decipher them!"

James and Sirius shared a look before groaning.

"Great, this is perfect! How are we going to do the assignment now?" Sirius whined.

"I'll go and ask Lily if we can borrow hers. She's in the library" James said before getting up.

"Which is where Remus is. He'll have already told her, James" Peter replied and James slumped back into his chair.

"This is _so_ not fair! I wonder what charm he used" Sirius scowled.

"No idea. Knowing Moony though, it'll be timed" James glumly replied.

"I s'pose we have to do this the old fashioned way then" Peter said before grabbing a blank piece of parchment and dipping his quill in the ink bottle.

James and Sirius nodded before doing exactly the same.

* * *

"I still can't believe you did that to your best friends, Remus" Lily said as the two of them made their way back to the common room. 

"Well, I'm just hoping this'll teach them not to always rely on my notes to get them out of trouble" Remus said, defending himself.

"Oh, no, I'm not mad at you. Actually, I think it's a wonderful idea. Glad you finally managed to stand up for yourself" she replied as they reached the portrait.

Lily was about to speak the password when Remus stopped her.

"Um, I'm not really sure you should go in there. They'll hex as soon as the portrait opens" he told her.

"I'm counting on it. Because I believe it'll be Sirius who shoots first, and once James sees that he got me…" she smiled and let her voice trail off.

Remus grinned in reply. "He'll go ballistic at him. You _are_ the devious one, aren't you!"

"Thank you, Remus. Coming from you, I'm taking that as a compliment."

Remus laughed before saying that he might go to the Gryffindor common room instead, and that Lily better tell him all about it tomorrow. Remus started to walk away as she spoke the password. He then heard her shriek, before hearing James' voice.

"Padfoot you twit! What'd you do _that_ for!"

"I thought it was Remus, I swear! I didn't Furnunculus her on _purpose_!"

Remus stifled his laughs as he quickly made his way back to Gryffindor tower.

* * *

"You'd better tell us how long it lasts, Moony" James whispered as they spotted Remus sitting across from Lily in the Great Hall having his breakfast. 

"Whatever are you talking about, Prongs?" Remus asked, amusement written all over his face.

Sirius glowered at him and pressed his face right up to Remus'.

"You know _perfectly_ well what we're talking about, Moony" he hissed.

"I did warn you, you know. Besides, I heard you got Lily quite nicely when she came back."

That did the trick and Sirius' face paled a bit and he backed away.

"That's because I thought she was _you_, you git!"

"Why Padfoot, I'm touched! I never knew you found me attractive!"

Sirius glared at Remus, while Peter and James both snorted into their pumpkin juice. The Gryffindors that were close by gave them questioning looks, but shook their heads and went back to eating.

"Don't worry about it, Sirius. It'll only last for a day."

"A day! Did you forget that we have that transfiguration assignment due!"

"Of course not, why do you think I waited until yesterday to do it?" Remus answered smoothly as he helped himself to some more toast.

"B…but, we haven't finished it! We only managed to get _half_ the required length for it!"

"Well, you should have thought about that earlier then. I'm not always going to bail you guys out, you know. Besides, you and James seem to be doing fine in Potions."

Sirius found himself with no reply to this, so he just dejectedly slumped into his chair before meekly sipping on his pumpkin juice.

* * *

Their latest Transfiguration class had finished, and everyone was packing their things away. 

"Potter, you will stay behind," McGonagall said, allowing herself a small smirk as James shrank into his seat a little. "Don't worry, it has nothing to do with your last assignment" she added.

The rest of the class vacated, and James gave Lily and his three friends a look that said 'I'll tell you later' before slowly making his way to McGonagall's desk.

"Now Potter, I have some bad news" she began, and James could only guess what she was about to say.

"You may or may not be aware that Mr Lynch received one of those letters earlier this week."

James hadn't known that fact, and was sincerely hoping that the third year was alright.

"I'm very sorry to hear that, Professor" he answered, not sure exactly where this was heading.

"He will be attending the funeral next weekend."

"And won't be able to play in the final against Slytherin" James said, finally piecing it together.

"Precisely. You need to find another player as we do not have any reserves."

"You know any decent flyers, Professor?"

"None capable of being seeker I'm afraid."

"What about other positions then?" he asked as an idea slowly began to take shape.

"Exactly what do you have in mind, Potter?"

"Well, with all due respect to the team, I have the best reflexes. I could play seeker…"

"And leave us a chaser short? I do not think that is a good…"

"No, no, I didn't mean that. Robinson makes a decent chaser…"

"But he's a far better keeper. That _is_ his position on the team."

"I know that, Professor. But he also knows our moves. It'll be easier to chuck him in as chaser, than bring in someone new" James argued.

"We need a keeper, Potter."

"And I have just the person" James grinned.

* * *

"You want me to do WHAT!" 

"Play keeper in our next game."

"I think you've lost your mind completely! You said I was hopeless on a broomstick!"

"You aren't _completely_ hopeless. Look, all you have to do is fly around the goalposts and dodge any bludgers that head your way."

"And make sure you don't fall off. I hear the ground comes up quite quickly" Remus added with a smile, while James gave him his best shut-up-you're-not-helping look.

"Think of all the girls that'll be swooning after you!"

"But Wormtail, I…"

"Come on. You haven't even been out with anyone since we started this year."

"Yeah, but Prongs…"

"You did mention you wanted to charm your motorbike to fly, didn't you?"

"All right, all right, I can take a ruddy hint! Fine, I'll play keeper" Sirius scowled, throwing his arms up in surrender.

"Good, I'll owl my parents and get them to send my old broom for you to use."

* * *

Matchday dawned, and the time passed all too quickly for Sirius. For once he didn't feel hungry, but James forced him to eat something before the game and it was with a heavy feeling of dread that he slowly followed the rest of the team to the changing rooms and pre-game pep talk by James. 

He didn't hear any of it, until James clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"Nervous?"

Sirius glared at his friend as if to say 'what do you think?'

James gave him a smile. "You'll be fine, Sirius. Just remember everything from the last practice. Try to shut out the crowd as best you can. Keep your eyes peeled for any bludgers heading your way. I don't think I need to remind you that Slytherin don't normally play fair."

Sirius nodded before he and the team mounted their brooms and shot outside to the waiting crowd. Sirius settled himself directly in front of the middle hoop and didn't have to wait long for the game to start.

The only thought going through his head was 'what in Merlin's name have I got myself into?' before he was called into action. Both bludgers were directed towards him, and Sirius did his best to roll out of the way. However this opened up the goals, and Slytherin duly scored. Barely a minute had passed and they were already behind.

'This is going to be a long day' he thought as he passed the quaffle to one of his chasers.

* * *

"How do you reckon he'll go?" 

"He'll be fine, Peter. Oh Merlin! Remind me to return that Defence book to the library once the game's finished, it's overdue!"

"_Wonderful_ time to remember that, Remus. Hopefully James will catch the snitch before they get more than…"

Lily's voice was drowned out as Gryffindor scored, levelling up the game at ten apiece.

She, Remus and Peter all loudly cheered and were soon swept up in the action. It was going to be a classic game, they could just feel it.

* * *

James was thinking the same thing as he saw his friend make his eighth save of the game. The score was one hundred and forty to seventy in Slytherin's favour, and the match had been going for nearly two hours. Surprisingly, Sirius had been playing incredibly well for someone in his first game. James had been confused by the Slytherins tactics though, so far they had played remarkably clean. James had seen no sign whatsoever of the snitch, but had spent most of the game trying to shake off his opposite number. 

Ironically enough, it was Sirius' younger brother, Regulus, who was the Slytherin seeker, and he seemed intent on blocking James every time he moved. He also had to withstand the barrage of insults Regulus had decided to employ.

"Hey Potter! You really think you can catch the snitch? You're not even a real seeker! Watch out for the quaffle, we wouldn't want you chasing after the wrong ball!"

'Ah, so he's finally run out of things to say about Padfoot' James thought. Turning around, he caught sight of a golden glint below him and started to dive for it. Regulus merely snorted before yelling after him.

"You must be seeing things, or you're trying to feint. I'm not stupid enough to fall for a Gryffindor's idea of a trick!"

Seconds later, James flew back up to where Regulus was, the snitch held firmly in his hand and a grin on his face.

"You may not be stupid enough to fall for a feint, but you _are_ stupid enough not to go for this!"

As James flew away from a scowling Regulus, and amidst cheers from the Gryffindor stands, he was soon engulfed by Sirius. They spotted Lily, Remus and Peter with enormous smiles on their faces as they both slowly descended onto the ground, James with the snitch held tightly in one hand, and his best friends' arm in the other, both raised in triumph.

James looked over to Sirius and grinned. "See? Nothing to worry about mate!"


	13. Chapter 13 – Sirius Celebrations

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Well, how about that, I actually wrote some Quidditch! Took me long enough too! This chapter was quite a bit of fun to write…actually it might even be the most fun chapter I have written!

* * *

**Chapter 13 – Sirius Celebrations**

Remus rushed towards the portrait that led into the Head Students dorm after going to the library to return his book before he forgot about it again.

As the portrait swung open, he started to blurt out his apology, "sorry I'm late guys, but…"

Remus was interrupted when Sirius, in his animagus form, bounded over to him and knocked him down.

"Whoa! Easy there Padfoot, I'm not _that_ strong, all right!" Remus laughed as he pushed his friend away and stood up, catching a whiff of Sirius' breath as he did so.

"Is that…that's firewhiskey! Where did you get _that_ from?" he asked as he shot a disapproving glare at James.

"When we both snuck out to Hogsmeade before Christmas. I got the butterbeer while Sirius got…oh Merlin, what in blazes name does he think he's doing!"

Remus looked down the same time James said this, as he felt something brushing his robe. He soon wished he hadn't, as the sight of Padfoot thrusting back and forth against his leg was something he could have done without seeing. It wasn't that particular fact that disturbed him the most though, that would have to be the look on Padfoot's face; pure delight was the only way to describe it.

"Um…exactly how much has he had?" Remus asked, as he tried in vain to move away from his intoxicated friend.

"Would you believe less than one glass?" Peter answered.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!" Remus said as he struggled to not laugh.

"I'm afraid not. His glass is still on the table. Just don't tell him that me and Peter made it a _tiny_ bit stronger though."

Remus raised an eyebrow, waiting for the explanation.

"Well, ok then. We _might_ have doubled its alcohol content. You should watch out Moony, he might use your leg for something else next!"

Remus looked confused at what James meant before it clicked. "If you think I'm going to let him do that on me, you have another thing…"

He was interrupted as James and Peter burst out laughing, while a shocked Remus felt something wet seep through the foot of his robe.

"DAMN IT SIRIUS, THESE WERE MY BEST ROBES! RIGHT, THAT'S IT, I'M BITING HIM NEXT FULL MOON!"

The werewolf looked down and saw Padfoot lower his leg before wagging his tail and bounding over to James.

"Oh no! He's not doing that to me! Jeez, you should see the crazed look in his eyes, he is _gone_!

"Darn right he is. I'll never be able to look at him the same way anymore," Remus muttered as he quickly dried his robe. He looked up at James before asking "may I please use your bathroom, Prongs? I don't know any spell that gets _this_ out."

James just pointed to his door, as he tried to stop a drunken Padfoot from licking his face.

"You know what. If he can't remember what happened, I think Remus should be the one who tells him that maybe he's the one who's gay" Peter said as he watched with amusement as Padfoot tumbled off James, rolled onto his back and fell asleep in an instant.

James got up and grinned at Peter before replying, "no, I'll tell him that. After all, he was the one who teased me about that exact thing when I was writing Lily's letter. Moony can be the one who can tell him how he wasn't sure whether _Professor McGonagall _enjoyed her leg being humped like that!"

They heard a snort of laughter from James' room, just before they heard Remus turn on the shower.

* * *

"I DID WHAT!" Sirius yelled as they sat down for breakfast. 

"Shh! Don't worry, we won't tell anyone" Remus replied innocently.

"McGonag…oh Merlin, when's our next class with her?"

"After breakfast" Peter answered.

"Cover for me, I ah…don't feel that great. Might need to go to the hosp…"

"Oh no you don't. You're not getting out of it that easily, Sirius. Where's that famous Gryffindor courage, hmm?" James asked, winking at his two friends.

"I think I left it in my trunk" he grumbled.

"Come on, Sirius. It won't be that bad, besides, she doesn't know about your alter ego…"

"I don't care! You could've left me with my hangover you know" he snapped back.

"Perhaps, but I wouldn't be a terribly good friend since I knew how to cure that."

"Yeah Remus, how _did_ you find that spell anyway?" James casually inquired.

Remus glared and mumbled something like "mind your own ruddy business" before James turned to Sirius.

"Actually, she mentioned that it was quite a pleasant aroma."

"Yes, I reckon we could dub it 'odour la Paddy'!" Peter mused, grinning at Sirius whose face began to pale and his eyes started to widen in horror.

"That's enough guys, Sirius doesn't need us to remind him about it."

"Thanks Moony, I knew you were my _best_ friend for…"

"Besides, Tuero came in shortly after and he did the same thing to him" Remus interrupted with a smile.

Sirius' face then flushed red, and his friends couldn't take it any longer and began to laugh.

He was saved from further embarrassment when the mail arrived. However, several owls landed in front of Sirius who slowly reached for one of the envelopes and opened it. As he scanned the parchment, his eyes slowly widened again. He quickly reached for another letter, and promptly did the same thing.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake Sirius, what is it? It can't be that…"

James stopped speaking as he read one of the opened letters for himself. A smile slowly crept across his face before he looked between the remaining owls and Sirius who snatched the letter back off him.

"So…"

"Don't say a word, James" Sirius said, relieving the rest of the owls of their letters.

"Hey, that's not fair. Can't you just really briefly tell us?"

"Fine. Peter, let's just say that you were right about witches swooning after me based on the match."

"I'll say. So are you asking Remus to join you?"

"Me? What do I have…"

"Oh, nothing. The letter I read likes the 'strong silent type', and asked if you and Sirius were available for…"

"That's quite enough, James" Sirius interrupted, his face starting to go red again. This scene was mirrored by Remus after he grabbed the letter in question and read it for himself.

* * *

As the four of them exited their Defence class, Sirius and Remus suddenly found themselves pressed up against the wall. 

"We're awaiting your reply, gentlemen" a feminine voice said.

"Can I…" Sirius began but was cut off when his mouth was smothered by another, and his sight obscured by blonde hair. He figured that Remus would be in a similar predicament.

James and Peter were watching the scene in shock before James grinned.

"Well, since both of you are _occupied_, we'll get to our next class. Come on Peter, let's leave these lovebirds alone."

If Sirius could, he would have reached for his wand and petrified both of them, but since his arms were being restrained he was unable to do so. Finally, the pressure released from his mouth and Sirius gasped for air, finally getting a chance to see who his 'attacker' was.

Two Gryffindors, fifth or sixth years most likely since Sirius didn't know them, one with long blonde hair, the other with long black hair, and both with sparkling eyes were looking at Remus and himself with enormous smiles on their faces.

"Er, do I…" Remus started, but the black-haired witch cut him off

"Sorry, but if you want to know more, you'll have to meet us in the common room tonight at ten. See you later boys."

Both of them winked before turning away and heading off to their next class leaving behind two highly shocked, but satisfied, seventeen year old wizards.

Remus then turned to Sirius who was grinning at him.

"So Moony…are you joining me tonight?"

* * *

As all five of them sat around in the Head Students common room, deciding to study for Charms, which they all shared together, the topic quickly turned to what happened earlier that day outside the classroom. 

"I know those two" Lily said, not looking up from her textbook.

"Really? Who are they, Lily?"

"They're both a little like you, Sirius. Both of them like to flirt an awful lot…"

"I think Padfoot meant names" James cut in.

"Oh right, sorry about that. The blonde-haired one is Eleanor, while the other witch is Bernadine."

"Eleanor Black and Bernadine Lupin. Sounds…nice" James replied with a big grin, while both Sirius and Remus glared at him while also trying to hide blushes.

"Knock it off, James. Besides, these two aren't really considering going up there tonight, are you" Lily said.

"No"

"Yes"

Remus and Sirius then looked at each other while James and Peter sniggered behind them.

"What do you mean 'no', Moony? You told me earlier…"

"I didn't say _anything_ earlier, Padfoot! If I remember rightly, you were too busy marvelling at how wonderful her…"

"We have an audience, Moony" Sirius interrupted, making sure Remus remembered where they were.

"Fine, but I'm not going."

"Come on, Remus. Merlin knows you could use a good…"

"Audience, Padfoot."

"Right, right, sorry. If you _don't_ go, I'll stun you and drag you with me anyway."

Remus scowled before finally relenting.

"Great! So what's the time now?"

"Half past nine" Lily instantly replied, shooting both wizards glares for going through with this.

"Guess we should get ready then, Moony. So which robe goes best with my hair, Prongs?"

"What do you think you're doing asking _me_ that?"

"Fine. Wormtail, any ideas?"

Peter looked just as stunned as James did when asked and quickly shook his head.

"Just wear plain black robes. Those two aren't worth dress robes" Lily answered, a harsh tone in her voice as she spoke.

"You ah, aren't mad at them, are you Lily?"

"No Peter, just disappointed. Those two witches aren't interested in anything but…"

"And we are, Lily?" Sirius casually asked, interrupting her.

"I don't want to hurt their feelings, Padfoot" Remus said looking concerned, but Sirius waved him off.

"Nonsense, Remus. Don't worry about it. I know exactly what I'm doing!"

"As much as it pains me to say, Padfoot's right, Moony."

"Thanks Prongs!"

"And exactly _how_ do you know that he's right, Mr Potter?" Lily suddenly asked, her eyes narrowing at James.

"Well, I mean…er…that Sirius has flirted with…er, lots of witches and…er, that he…er…"

"Enough, James. I _really_ don't want to hear it" she answered, much to the relief of James.

"Anyway, we should get ready Moony."

"Fine, we'll have to grab our robes from our trunks."

"Yep, see you guys later then."

"Don't do anything we wouldn't!" Peter shouted as Sirius and Remus disappeared into James' room to use the passage into the boys' dormitory.

Seconds later, Sirius popped his head back into the common room.

"How silly of me! Accio invisibility cloak!"

The cloak shot out from under the table and Sirius caught it before vanishing back into the room.

"Bugger! There goes _that_ idea" James said as he slumped back into his chair, with Lily glaring at him.


	14. Chapter 14 – Battle Lines Are Drawn

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Again, both the witches names are from 'Gone In Sixty Seconds'; Eleanor is the Shelby GT500, while Bernadine is the…Jag XJ220 (hmm, wonder why I picked _that_ one!).

This is my longest chapter for this story. It's a bit 'dark', and those who easily get queasy probably won't like it that much (I didn't really enjoy writing it either). In short, I give detail about what happened to Remus' parents. It's not terribly gruesome…but I thought it'd be safer to inform you first.

This is where the action of this fic starts to pick up. Dormant and BotE were both far different to this, in that both spent the first two thirds detailing stuff before the Christmas hols, with the rest being after it. I split this one pretty much in half. The simple reason for Dormant and BotE's case is that I spent that much time setting up the last bit of the story, whereas I haven't for this one. I haven't given much, if any, indication of what's to come…_that_ is about to change! The talk at the end is why this chapter goes on for a bit, but I didn't want to cut it short, so I just carried it through in its entirety.

I won't be able to update next weekend since I'm not going to be home, so you'll have to wait an extra week for ch 15…sorry about that, but real life comes first I'm afraid. Also, the sequel to BotE has hit a bit of a snag, and I'm having some trouble writing the next bit for it. I am hoping this delay doesn't last long :)

* * *

**Chapter 14 – Battle Lines Are Drawn**

For the next few weeks, Sirius Black walked around with a huge smile plastered to his face most of the time. Remus had only ventured with him that one night, and decided to let Sirius enjoy his new found attention. Nothing any of his friends said could bring Sirius down from his feeling of floating, even when they told him the truth about his post-game celebrations.

The four wizards had had one more session with Trent, where he got them to cast the Patronus charm on a transfigured Dementor, exactly like he had done with James the first time he was able to cast it. And, like before, only James could successfully cast the charm, but the others had improved. Sirius and Remus could produce a mist, but it was much thicker than the last time, while Peter had at last been able to get a faint silver wisp coming from his attempts.

Classes had been a blur, with all the Professors dumping enormous amounts of homework on them, and only Remus and Lily seemed to be able to handle it all, both of them hidden behind large stacks of books. James and Sirius were coping alright, and both could be found venturing to the library. However, both of them were looking quite frazzled, with James' hair being much messier than normal, while Sirius had deep rings under his eyes from lack of sleep.

If this was what 'coping' looked like, it was nothing to how Peter was acting. Remus had kept his word, and was helping Peter were he could, but the small wizard was clearly starting to get stressed. He could be heard snapping at his friends if they so much as breathed near him, only to apologise to them straight away. He had even opted out of the majority of their pranks, as had Remus, which only had left James and Sirius to carry out the job. Both had spent a few days in separate detentions, and had used Sirius' charmed mirrors to quiz each other for their upcoming NEWT's.

The month of March was half over when the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin reached new heights. James and Sirius had been targeted by Severus in their Defence class, but it had been Remus who had ended up bearing the brunt of his payback. He had said it wasn't intentional, but Remus knew the Slytherin had been looking for ways to get him back for the incident in fifth year when Sirius had told Severus how to enter the tunnel beneath the Whomping Willow. Even though Remus hadn't knowingly been a part of it, something he had told Severus often, Severus refused to believe him, and had delighted in reminding Remus about what had happened to his parents over the summer holidays.

It had been this fact that annoyed James and Sirius, and their pranks had, once again, centred mainly on Severus. The young Slytherin had taken matters into his own hands during Defence and had directed several hexes in their direction, knowing they'd shield them. Severus had slightly modified his spells, so that every deflected spell targeted the nearest dark creature; a certain werewolf.

A resultant scuffle broke out between all the Gryffindors and Slytherins in the class, and the Professor abandoned all attempts to calm the class down and had decided to wait for them to finish it themselves. The end result was that twelve students (including the Marauders, Lily, Severus and Walden Macnair) had spent the night in the hospital wing, and both houses were out of the running for the House cup. Numerous fights had then broke out in the halls once the younger years had heard what transpired, and why they had lost so many points overnight. The Aurors had stepped in quickly and stopped the students from injuring each other, but they could only do so much since the students severely outnumbered them.

James and Remus had been once again told to stay behind after their latest Charms class by Professor Flitwick, after both had hexed Severus the moment he had started to taunt Remus again. The tiny Professor had been kind to them, as he pitied what Remus must be going through, and had merely told them to try to ignore everything Severus says, a task much easier said than done.

Remus and James made their way hurriedly through the corridors to their next class which happened to be Transfiguration.

"I can't believe Snivellus did that! When I get my hands on…"

James was interrupted when Remus went sprawling to the floor. His bag split as it hit the ground and all of his textbooks, notes and quills went scattering everywhere.

"Pity, I _was_ aiming for Potter" a cold voice came from behind them.

James felt his anger rising within him. He slowly withdrew his wand and turned around.

"I'd watch it, Snivellus. You might get some grease in your eye. You wouldn't want _that_, would you" James taunted.

Severus smirked and turned his attention back to Remus, who was gathering up all of his belongings.

"I thought you would've noticed me there, Lupin. What with your keen senses…"

"Shut up, Snivellus! Don't make me use this" James interrupted and quickly pointed his wand straight at Severus' chest.

"I wasn't talking to you, Potter. This isn't your concern" Severus spat.

James narrowed his eyes. "As Remus' best friend, this _is_ my concern. I'll tell you one last time, Snivellus; Leave. Remus. Alone."

Severus ignored James and spoke to Remus instead, "I challenge you to a duel, Lupin. Tonight, ten o'clock at the Quidditch pitch."

Remus looked up at the greasy haired Slytherin before answering, "fine. I accept, on several conditions."

James looked astounded. Remus had _never_ been in a duel before as far as he knew.

"What conditions, Lupin. I'm not waiting for the right time of the month if that's what you're after" Severus sneered at the young werewolf.

Remus merely smiled, "no. Firstly, I want it to be a proper Wizards duel, James will be my second. Second, anything goes. Lastly, no one is to find out about this in advance. Accept that, and you shall have your duel."

Severus glared at Remus before nodding his head. "Very well, Lupin. Have it your way. Myself and Macnair shall be waiting for you."

As Severus strode off, leaving Remus to pick up his remaining items, James grabbed his friend.

"What are you playing at?"

Remus sighed, "this has been a long time coming, James. He still thinks I was in on Sirius' attempt to kill him in our fifth year."

"But why did you want anything goes? That means he can use Dark arts!"

"I'm aware of that. I'm also aware of what _I_ can do, James. Are you in, or should I ask Sirius instead?"

"Are you kidding? There's no way I'm letting Padfoot see this at my expense. Count me in!"

Remus nodded, "good, then let's go. That git has already made us late."

They both then ran to their Transfiguration class, hoping Professor McGonagall would be lenient on them for being late. Neither of them noticed the wizard with hazel eyes and glasses who had overheard everything from his position in the shadows. He looked quite concerned over what he'd just witnessed. He had a feeling what a couple of Slytherins might be capable of.

* * *

James and Remus made their way towards the Quidditch pitch. They had told Sirius and Peter that Remus was feeling ill and that James was escorting him to the hospital wing. That satisfied Peter, but Sirius knew that there was something they weren't telling him. 

Once they got there, they weren't really surprised to see Snape and Walden Macnair already waiting for them.

"If you don't mind, Snape, we can skip the bowing bit. Even though it would be nice to see you bow to me" Remus said as he and Severus made their way to the centre of the pitch, while James and Walden got out of the way.

Remus and Severus glared at each other as they got into their respective duelling positions. Just as they were about to begin, a familiar voice cut through the air,

"I believe we need to have a little chat in my office."

They all turned to see who the voice belonged to. To say they were stunned when they saw a tall figure with half-moon glasses and a long white beard would be a big understatement. Albus Dumbledore was standing with his wand pointed at Severus, while Trent Fuller was alongside, his wand locked on James, his gaze on Remus. Dumbledore's face was a picture of calmness, but Trent looked furious.

James gulped; they were in _deep_ trouble.

* * *

Neither of the young wizards said anything as they made their way up the spiral staircase that led into Dumbledore's office. Once inside Dumbledore waited until the four teenagers were seated before speaking, 

"I'm disappointed in you all. Imagine my surprise when Mr Fuller here came to me earlier today informing me of a conversation involving three of you seated here. All of you know you are not supposed to use magic outside of classes, unless given permission."

"Headmaster, if I may make a suggestion?"

Dumbledore nodded, "certainly, Mr Fuller."

Trent nodded in thanks before turning his attention to the four students in front of him.

"Myself and Mr Moody, a colleague of mine, could use some additional help tomorrow night while we patrol the school grounds. Since it's the weekend, you won't need to worry about them falling asleep during class. It would also give my colleague and myself the opportunity to inform at least two of these four about how _catatonically_ _stupid_ they were."

Dumbledore had a light smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes as Trent said the last few words. He nodded again before he spoke,

"Very well, that is an excellent idea, Mr Fuller. Before we adjourn tonight, I'm afraid I must take fifty points off each of you. However, since both of your houses do not have that many points anymore, I shall just take all those points that have been earned away instead. Have a nice night."

Trent rolled his eyes as Dumbledore said the last comment then gestured the students outside where he told them to meet both he and Alastor Moody tomorrow night at nine at the castle doors. All four nodded before making their way to their respective dorms.

"You mean you had a duel! And you didn't tell us!" Sirius exclaimed as he and Peter bombarded them with questions as Remus and James arrived back.

"We were going to, but Dumbledore and Trent stopped us."

"Why?"

"I suspect we'll find out tomorrow night, Sirius. We've got detention with Trent and another Auror" Remus glumly answered.

* * *

James and Remus followed Trent (who had told Moody that since he knew them, he would talk to them tonight, something his fellow Auror agreed with) to the Quidditch pitch. James initially wondered why they were going there, but then realised that Trent had probably decided for them to start their patrol here. 

Neither of them was prepared for when Trent stopped and turned to face them. Trent's eyes were narrowed so much that they were mere slits. The kind Auror they had known, the one who taught them more about the Patronus charm and even joked around with them on occasion, had been replaced by this cold calculating wizard in front of them.

Remus gave James a nervous glance, he'd never seen anyone look so intimidating before. He imagined this was the Trent who went out and caught Death Eaters. The twinkle in his eyes was gone, replaced by a hardness which gave the impression that Trent had seen a lot more than Remus thought he had. None of them noticed a set of grey eyes watching them from the forest.

"WHAT THE _HELL_ WERE YOU TWO THINKING?" Trent roared.

Both James and Remus flinched, but didn't say anything. This was probably a good thing considering Trent had only just started.

"Take a good look around _boys_. Does this _look_ like a nice place to die?" Trent asked, his voice still loud, although not as much as before.

Remus looked confused, and James must have looked the same because Trent snorted before continuing,

"Don't act like that. Did it ever cross your _tiny_ minds who exactly you were dealing with? Oh, I'm sorry, of course it didn't."

"What do you mean?" James asked.

He immediately regretted it when Trent snarled at him, "DON'T interrupt me, Potter! Judging by your conversation on the train when we first met, I take it that neither of you like Dark wizards very much. So why you decide to pick a duel with the sons of Death Eaters is beyond me!"

"Death Eaters? You mean…" Remus began, but Trent cut him off,

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO INTERRUPT ME! Yes, both Snape's and Macnair's fathers are Death Eaters! Do you know why we stopped your duel last night?"

James was about to speak, but decided against it as he didn't want to be yelled at again.

Trent let out a hollow laugh, "good, you both _are_ listening to me. If it had have been a duel, just between you and Snape, we would have let it go. We stopped it because of something else."

Trent then turned to James, who felt Trent's hazel eyes boring into his own.

"You need to watch your back, Potter. You obviously had no idea that Macnair had his wand directed on you, and was only waiting for the other duel to start before cursing you. Rest assured he _wasn't_ planning on using a Cheering charm either."

James' eyes widened and Trent smirked.

"Ah, it all fits together now, doesn't it. Did you honestly expect two Slytherins to play _fair_?"

"I…I'm sorry" James said simply.

"What. For" Trent answered, his voice still frosty.

"For not thinking…"

Trent interrupted and shouted "DAMN RIGHT YOU DIDN'T! This duel never should have made it outside. You are Head Boy. It's your JOB to ensure the safety of your fellow students, regardless if they're your friends or not!"

Trent then ripped his gaze from James and glared at Remus, who could almost feel Trent's eyes piercing through the back of his skull. He found he could not meet Trent's face and stared at the ground instead.

"And YOU should never have accepted the duel in the FIRST place! From what I've heard, you are easily the most intelligent wizard in the school, Lupin. Did it never occur to you to just say no? I don't care about what Sirius and you did, or didn't do, in your attempt to kill Snape, but I never thought you would act so stupidly!"

Trent then spoke in a low clear voice, "your parents would have be appalled, Lupin."

Remus snapped his head up. He was livid. Trent had _no_ _idea_ what he had gone through last summer. He had _no_ _right_ to say that. Suddenly, Remus forgot that the wizard in front of him was at least ten years older than him, and could easily kill him if he wanted to. He felt his anger rise within him as he shouted,

"I DON'T BELIEVE YOU SAID THAT! I LOVED MY PARENTS, AND THEY LOVED ME!"

Remus glared at Trent, then realised what he had done. He got a horrified look on his face and shifted his gaze back to the ground.

"Sorry"

Trent smiled grimly, "no you're not. And nor should you be. I'm the one who should apologise. You weren't at home when it happened, were you, Remus."

Remus shook his head, "I was at my grandparents place. Mum suggested I visit them that day. I wish I hadn't now."

"Your friends would say otherwise. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but I believe you have a right to know."

That got Remus' attention. He lifted his head and looked at Trent in confusion.

"Know…what? How…how do you know what happened?" Remus asked, struggling to keep his emotions under control as he remembered being informed the day after by his grandfather.

"Because I was one of the first Aurors who turned up at your house. I saw the message they left for you."

Remus' eyes widened in terror. He wasn't told about the Death Eaters leaving a message for him.

"What did it say?" James asked.

Trent glanced at James before looking back at the werewolf. "That is up to Remus. If he wants to hear it, I'll tell him. If he doesn't want to hear it, I won't. Whether or not he wants you here if he does want to hear it, is his choice."

Remus blinked away the tears that had started to well up in his eyes before he looked up at Trent, "I…I want to hear it," he then looked over at James, "alone though."

James nodded and headed off towards the grandstand. He was a little sad that Remus didn't want him there, but he could understand it. He, himself, would have made exactly the same decision.

As James walked away, Trent looked over at Remus with a heavy heart. He flopped onto the ground, gesturing for the young werewolf to do the same. After Remus sat down, Trent looked over at him and could see tears trailing down Remus' face.

"Why…why didn't you tell me this before?" Remus croaked.

Trent closed his eyes, "because I remember you on the train, Remus. You were distant and wanted to be left alone. Your friends were trying their best to get you to open up by joking around, but you needed more time. I could tell then, in that instant, that you were an incredibly strong wizard."

Remus allowed a light smile cross his face as he said "not as strong as James."

Trent sighed and muttered as he opened his eyes, "Merlin, not _another_ one."

"What do you mean 'another one'?" Remus asked.

"Peter said the same thing, only he added yours and Sirius' name to his list. Remus, listen to me. You are _not_ weak, and don't let _anyone_ tell you otherwise. You put on a mask, trying to hide all the emotions you were feeling. A mask which you haven't taken off since your final year began. Believe me, I know how difficult taking that mask off is, but you have to."

"How could you possibly know what I'm going through?" Remus retorted, trying to keep his anger out of his voice.

"Because I did the exact same thing three years ago."

Remus looked over at Trent, and found him just staring into space. Remus was about to ask, but didn't need to as Trent continued,

"I'm supposed to be married, Remus. I'm not supposed to be here. Voldemort had spread his poison everywhere, even to my home, even Australia."

He added "yes Remus, I'm not from around here. I transferred to Europe this year to help in the war" despite not realising that was what Remus had wanted to ask.

Trent sighed and continued again, "I've spent the last five years fighting against Voldemort's forces in Australia. We are currently the only country that has managed to successfully drive him away. We caught all his followers. We lost a lot of good people, Remus. You see, Australia doesn't have a medical facility like St Mungos."

Trent felt tears begin to form as he carried on "I watched my fiancé die at the hands of Death Eaters. She was a squib, and couldn't defend herself like we could, but she wanted to fight. I let her, because I knew she would have done it anyway, regardless of what I said. She was part the muggle Police, and they knew something was wrong when all these mysterious deaths started to happen. Our Ministry made the decision to inform them about our magical community, and we fought alongside each other.

"After losing her, I wanted nothing but for the ground to swallow me up. I hid for three months, Remus. I just couldn't do it anymore. I wanted to be left alone. That was until my friends found me, and asked me what she would want me to do. And they were right, she would want me to carry on. That is what I fought for, Remus. I vowed to drive out Voldemort, even if no one else could. Our combined efforts proved enough. Our entire country now has anti-apparition wards in place, effectively cutting us off from the rest of the wizarding world. Of course, you can get around those, but it's exceedingly difficult, not to mention painful at first."

"How can you get around the wards? I've heard it's impossible."

Trent chuckled, "nothing is impossible, Remus. Take house elves, for example. I didn't think you were supposed to be able to apparate around Hogwarts, yet they do."

"Oh" was all Remus said before asking what he wanted to know. "What…what was it like? My house when you turned up, I mean."

Trent sighed, "are you ready to hear this, Remus? Do you want to know the reason why they did what they did?"

Remus slowly nodded, and Trent could see the determination in his eyes, along with a few tears. Trent sighed again and began, "your parents loved you more than you could possibly know, Remus. Whatever you did to Severus, he informed his father about it. And I've already told you about where his allegiances lie."

"You…you mean they killed them…because of…_me_?" Remus asked, his voice starting to choke up.

Trent shook his head, "no. That wasn't their intention. I'm not going to sugarcoat this, all right?"

Remus nodded and waited for Trent to continue.

"They wanted _you_, Remus. And since you weren't there, they decided to kill your parents instead, rather than wait for you. When we arrived, the dark mark was already hovering above your house. We went inside and found the burnt remains of your parents, believe me it wasn't a pretty sight. We split up, to see what else they'd done and I must have walked into your bedroom.

"They hadn't touched anything at all. In fact if it wasn't for the dark mark, we would never have known that anything had happened. Anyway, I went into your bedroom and found a message on one of the walls. It read; '_you can't hide forever, half-blood. You will be next'_. I was disgusted, so I vanished the message the moment I read it. I'm sorry, Remus. I really am."

Trent then reached over and pulled the now sobbing young wizard into an embrace. James was watching from the grandstand and hadn't heard what the other two were talking about. He saw his friend let out all the pain and anguish he'd hidden so far this year. James had never seen Remus this vulnerable before, and felt ashamed that it wasn't him, Sirius and Peter who had done what Trent was doing. All they needed to say was that they were there for him if he ever needed to talk. He felt a lump form in his throat and a single tear slowly trickled down his cheek.

Trent still held Remus close, as the teenager continued to sob.

"That's the way, Remus. Tears cleanse the soul. Become stronger from this. Just promise me one thing."

The young werewolf looked up into Trent's eyes, and saw the sadness in them.

"What's that?" Remus asked, his voice barely more than a croak.

"Don't blame Severus for this. It wasn't his intention."

Remus broke out of Trent's grasp and jumped on his feet, "HOW CAN YOU _SAY_ THAT! HE'S RESPONSIBLE FOR IT! THE NEXT TIME I SEE HIM, I'LL KILL HIM!"

"Remus, calm down."

"CALM DOWN? HOW CAN I DO THAT AFTER WHAT YOU'VE JUST TOLD ME?" Remus screamed.

"Because you have to believe me. If Severus really wanted to kill you, why would he have waited until last summer? Why didn't he do it the previous summer, _directly_ after you and Sirius attempted to kill him?" Trent countered.

Remus opened his mouth to yell, but found he didn't have an answer for that. By that time James had come running over from the grandstands, having heard Remus' outburst.

"What happened? What did you do to him, Trent?" James asked, as he moved over to comfort Remus who was shaking.

"If Remus wants to tell you, he will, James. I'll finish what I have to say though. He didn't do it then, Remus, because he didn't know where you lived."

"Then how'd he find out? I sure as hell didn't tell him" Remus snapped.

"I believe one of your friends has a younger brother in the same house as the person in question" Trent answered.

Remus' hands curled into fists. "Regulus" he spat.

James was looking between the two in confusion, but decided to not interrupt. Trent was right; if Remus wanted to tell him, he would.

Trent nodded, "indeed. Again, I'm sorry to have been the one who told you this, but…"

Remus shook his head and interrupted, "I'm not sorry you did. In fact, I'm actually glad that you _were_ the one who told me."

"Very well, I believe we should probably make a start on the patrol though. We've been here for longer than I expected. Are you all right to do this, Remus?"

He nodded, "yes. Walking around the grounds for a while might clear my head a bit."

Trent then stood up and headed off to start his patrol, with Remus and James following in his wake, along with the set of grey eyes in the distance.


	15. Chapter 15 – Once Shy, Twice Bitten

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Why did Trent tell Remus that his parents loved him more than he knew? Trent knows he's a werewolf (even though Remus doesn't remember it). Think back to PoA…Remus' parents did all they could for him; they could have shunned him…easily, but didn't. I was merely trying to portray that particular fact.

Again, sorry about cutting last chapter where I did…oh yes, that isn't all that happens that night! And yet another poor chapter title, my apologies again! Actually, I take it back, this is a rather cryptic title…good luck guessing! It's not really that hard AFTER you've read the chapter though (well, _I_ don't think it is)!

* * *

**Chapter 15 – Once Shy, Twice Bitten**

It was around one in the morning when James ran into the back of Trent, who had stopped.

"What's goi..."

James was silenced when Trent held up a hand. Trent then slowly looked around, straining his eyes towards the forest. His back was turned to the two students as he talked to them.

"Listen up you two. Head back to the castle, and go straight to the Headmasters office. The password is 'Bertie botts', all right."

"Why? What should we tell him?" Remus asked.

"The truth. Tell him that Voldemort has sent a couple of scouts."

James and Remus glanced at each other in surprise, they hadn't been expecting that.

"Leave now, quickly!" Trent urged.

"But we can help…"

Trent nearly snorted, "don't be stupid, James. Maybe against Death Eaters you might, but unless you can fight against three werewolves, then I suggest you listen to me."

"W…werewolves? But it's not…"

"Full moon. I know, Remus. But there are some dark rituals one can use. Now go!"

Remus and James again looked at each other before taking off at full sprint back towards the castle doors.

"Do you think we should tell him about us?" James asked as they were still running.

"No. He's an Auror. He should be able to deal with this. I wonder how he knew they were there. I couldn't pick anything up."

"Nor could I. But as you said, he _is_ an Auror."

They reached the doors and flung them open, before racing through the corridors up to Dumbledore's office.

* * *

As James and Remus ran off, Trent drew his wand before quietly making his way towards the forest. He stopped near the edge of the trees and waited. He knew that the wolves would sense him, and unlike with what he'd done with Remus a few months ago, he was planning on putting these werewolves down for good. 

As the wolves were circling their prey, one of them snapped its head up. It sniffed the air and caught the scent of a human. It nodded at the other two and all three took off to where their next target was, leaving behind a very badly scratched and battered large black dog with grey eyes.

Trent smiled as he saw three shadows slowly moving against the backdrop of the trees. He raised his wand, preparing to make this quick should they all strike at the same time. Trent hoped they wouldn't, as it would be far easier to deal with them individually, and fortunately he had luck on his side. As one of the wolves stepped out into the clearing, Trent could see it baring its fangs. He didn't waste any time, the same moment that the werewolf pounced, Trent cried out,

"Encaustum silvino!"

Silver ink spewed forth from his wand and met the beast in midair. The wolf did its best to shake off the silver substance, but to no avail as its life force was slowly being sapped away. The other two had seen what had happened to their alpha, and decided to tackle their opponent together. This may have worked against most, but not an Auror.

As the two werewolves circled around, Trent tried to formulate a plan. He couldn't cast two silver ink charms at once and nor would he have the time to cast it twice. In the end, he needn't have worried. The wolves settled themselves on either side of Trent, and directly opposite each other.

The two wolves leapt at Trent, who dropped to the ground. In a flash, he again cast the silver ink charm. Two wolves and one charm met each other at the same time. As Trent got up off the ground he looked over at the struggling beasts. He decided to show a little mercy, as he was unsure how painful silver was to them. He then pointed his wand at them before casting the Killing curse on each of them. He then moved into the forest, to check if they had attacked any of the creatures that called the forest their home.

Sirius, in his animagus form, sensed that someone was near. He decided to chance his luck. He felt it was better to be killed by a Dark wizard straight away, than being left here to die from blood loss. He could feel his strength failing him and he whimpered, hoping the person could hear him. He soon heard footsteps nearby, before a familiar voice,

"Oh Merlin! So _that's_ what took them so long."

Sirius inwardly relaxed as he recognised Trent's voice. His insides then froze as he realised Trent had now seen him in his animagus form. He wondered if he should stay in his dog form, but this was discarded when Trent next spoke.

"I'm going to heal you now. Just don't move alright? I believe we need to have a little chat about tonight, Mr Black."

So Trent knew. Well, no sense in trying to hide it. He let Trent heal him, then transformed back into his human form. Trent glared at him, Sirius faltering under his gaze.

"Looks like I'll have a new partner to help me with next week's patrol, Sirius. We'd better get you up to the hospital wing."

"But you already healed me!" Sirius exclaimed.

"That may be so, but you need to take a blood replenishing potion. Why did you decide to follow us tonight?"

Sirius hung his head, "I…I was just curious, that's all."

Trent glared at the young wizard in front of him. "Well, curiosity _nearly_ killed the cat, or in this case, the dog."

Sirius looked lost and Trent had to smile, "it's a muggle thing, don't worry about it."

Trent then returned to glaring "the point is you nearly _died_, Sirius. Why couldn't you have waited until the morning and just _ask_ them?"

"I…I don't know" he answered truthfully.

"Fine, let's get you back to the castle. You need to get some rest."

Trent helped Sirius to his feet, before speaking again, "first things first though. The others will most likely be waiting for me, and you being with me could cause some problems. If anyone asks, you were attacked by centaurs, and I found you before the werewolves did, got it."

Sirius nodded in reply. He wondered how Trent knew about him being an animagus, but decided against asking. Trent would probably tell him next week during their patrol.

Trent let Sirius use him as support as they slowly made their way back to the edge of the forest. The sight that greeted Sirius was not one to remember. Albus Dumbledore was standing over the dead bodies of the three werewolves. Remus and James were with him, with Remus standing over to one side, not daring to move any closer to the wolves.

They looked up when the duo came out of the forest, and the looks on James and Remus' faces was one of shock.

"S…Sirius? What happ…"

"Questions later, Mr Potter. Would you and Mr Lupin please escort your friend to the hospital wing for treatment. He got into a fight with a couple of centaurs and has lost quite a lot of blood. I was lucky to get to him before the wolves found him."

Trent then looked over at Dumbledore before continuing, "with your permission, Headmaster, I would like to relieve both students from continuing their patrol with me tonight. I would, however, like Mr Black to come with me _next_ weekend."

Dumbledore nodded his agreement, before James and Remus helped Sirius back to the castle doors, leaving Trent and Dumbledore standing over the dead bodies of three werewolves.

"I didn't think centaurs attacked students, Mr Fuller" Dumbledore said, his blue eyes twinkling.

Trent smiled. He knew that the young wizards had not told Dumbledore about them being animagi. Trent was going to keep his promise of not saying anything, even though the four students didn't remember.

"They don't. But Mr Black is of age, and is therefore legally an adult. I guess that fact must have slipped his mind."

Dumbledore nodded, then looked down at the werewolves, "what did you do to them?"

"Silver ink charm. My personal modification of 'Encaustum'. Then I put them out of their misery. I don't know exactly how painful silver is, so I just killed them. Three more casualties of war."

With that, Trent nodded at the Headmaster and continued his patrol. He hoped that nothing else would happen tonight, it had been far too eventful already.

* * *

The next day quickly passed, with Sirius being released from the hospital wing shortly before lunch. His friends had restrained from asking him anything, but he knew they were waiting for the right time; namely when just the four of them were alone. They all were sitting in James and Lily's common room, and after James whispered something into Lily's ear, she announced that she wanted to head to the library to study for her Healing NEWT. 

After she had left, Sirius felt three sets of eyes on him. It was James who got the 'interrogation' under way.

"Padfoot, did you follow us last night?"

"No! Well…um…yes" Sirius managed to say before staring at the floor so as not to see the glares his three friends were giving him.

"Why? You said you were just hungry and wanted to go to the kitchens. I was starting to wonder if you got lost."

"I…I didn't want you to come with me, Wormtail."

"What! Why not? Sirius, I thought I was your friend! You do trust me, don't you?"

Sirius snapped his head up and snorted, "of course I trust you. I...I just wanted to go alone, all right."

Peter bit his lip, "fine. But what happened? These two said you were attacked by centaurs, is that true?"

"Yes, I…" Sirius began, but Remus angrily interrupted him,

"That's a lie and you know it, Padfoot!"

His three friends looked at him. James and Peter shared a look of confusion, but Sirius' face was etched in sorrow and regret.

"How much did you hear last night?" the young werewolf asked.

"No…nothing…"

"DON'T lie to me, Sirius. Or did you forget that I have a heightened sense of smell? You didn't think I wouldn't be able to sniff the scent of werewolf on you while we were taking you to the hospital wing, did you. I can also smell your fear right now. Answer my question!" he snarled.

Again, Sirius hung his head in shame.

"Moony's right, Padfoot. How much did you hear?" James gently asked.

Sirius closed his eyes before answering. He spoke so quietly, that only Remus could pick up what he said. Peter and James immediately turned to Remus whose voice had started to choke up, but not with sadness.

"You heard…everything? What about…you…you didn't hear what Trent told me after James had moved to the stands…did you?"

Again, Sirius spoke in barely more than a whisper, "yes."

Remus' eyes flashed in anger before he stormed outside, slamming the portrait behind him in the process.

Peter turned to Sirius to ask the most obvious question, but Sirius got in first, "don't ask, please. It's bad enough that Moony knows I heard. Just…don't ask…either of us. I'm going to try to talk to him."

Peter and James nodded, watching him go outside. Whatever Sirius had overheard, was obviously something he shouldn't have. Sirius on the other hand was hoping his friend would find it within himself to forgive him…like he had done two years ago.

* * *

The other Gryffindors watched as Remus came marching into the common room before stomping up to the dorms. His face had a look on it that suggested if anyone got in his way, they'd be instantly vaporised. As the young wizard threw himself on his bed, he could feel the tears stinging his eyes. He wasn't upset, he was beside himself. 

'How could he _do_ that? After what happened two years ago when he told Snape to follow me, I thought he'd learnt. He _must_ remember how long it took for me to even _think_ about trusting him again. And now he does this…Sirius, you…you…_idiot_! And then to be attacked by those werewolves…'

Remus was brought from his thoughts when the door creaked open and he could smell an unwanted scent.

"I have nothing to say to you" he coolly said, slowly getting off his bed and standing up.

"R…Remus? I'm sor…"

Sirius was cut off when a jet of light hit the wall beside him.

"Perhaps you didn't hear me. Leave. Now. Black. I _won't_ miss next time" Remus spoke in a low voice through gritted teeth, his wand pointed straight at his friends' heart.

"Please, let me expl…"

Again he was cut off when a beam of light crashed into his body, sending him back through the open door. Sirius flew across the common room and there was a loud 'crack' as he used his arm to stop his head from smashing into the wall.

All commotion ceased when this happened, and Sirius gingerly stood up, cradling his right arm. He then saw Remus, eyes ablaze with fury at the top of the stairs.

"GET OUT! DON'T YOU GET IT, BLACK? I _DON'T_ WANT TO TALK RIGHT NOW, PARTICULARLY NOT TO _YOU_! GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!"

Sirius flinched but quickly left the room without another word. He knew he'd done it this time; he'd betrayed his best friend…again.


	16. Chapter 16 – The Slow Healing Process

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

No idea about the dark rituals…I'm just assuming that there are! Voldemort could have tricked them by saying it's a cure, thus getting them on his side or something. As to why he'd send them to spy; obviously Voldemort would know about the Aurors being posted. Why wouldn't he try to thin their numbers a little?

* * *

**Chapter 16 – The Slow Healing Process**

"What do you reckon he heard?" James asked, after Sirius had left to try to talk to Remus.

"No idea, Prongs. Whatever it was mustn't have been something Moony wanted him to hear."

"Brilliant observation, Wormtail! What else can you predict for me? Maybe that Lily will beat me in our NEWT's!"

"Oh, be quiet! No need to get all sarcastic on me, James. I was only answering _your_ question."

"I know, I know. It's just…this is kind of like when he sent Snivellus to follow him. You remember how long it took for the two of them to become friends again."

"James, how would _you_ feel if your best friend just betrayed a secret you wanted _no one_ to know?"

"Look, I'm not saying that, Wormtail. I'm just saying that whatever it was, I hope it won't tear all of us apart. Besides, without Moony, who'd have done all the notes for our History classes!"

Peter grinned, "or put most of the charms on the map. Hopefully they'll sort it out, and maybe tell us what the hell just happened."

At that point, Sirius came slinking back into the common room.

"Merlin! Sirius, what happened to your arm?"

"Moony" he answered.

"Then, he talked to you" James said.

Sirius nodded, "yeah, he did."

"And?" Peter asked after a long silence, to which Sirius simply replied, "he hates me."

James scoffed, "oh come off it, Padfoot. He doesn't _hate_ you…"

"You want to bet! You didn't hear what he told me. He was incensed! I shouldn't have even bothered trying to speak with him" Sirius said as he slumped in defeat on the couch in front of the fire.

James and Peter looked at each other and gave a silent nod. They both then walked over and sat down beside Sirius, who had a blank look on his face.

"It can't have been that bad…" Peter began.

Sirius snorted before interrupting "oh believe me, it was. He's never going to talk to me again."

James couldn't believe what his friend was saying. "Sirius, listen to me. If Moony could forgive you for nearly getting Snivellus killed, he'll forgive you for this."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Prongs. You have no idea what I've done to him. This is loads worse than what I did back then."

That surprised James. He most certainly hadn't been expecting Sirius to say that.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Peter asked.

"I…I don't think I should."

"But how can we help you if we don't know why the two of you aren't talking?" Peter countered.

Sirius sighed, before looking at his arm for the first time. James followed his gaze and winced. He knew what a broken arm felt like as he had copped a bludger in his third year.

"I'll go and get Lily. She should be able to fix that up for you. After all, she is taking Healing."

"Thanks Prongs" Sirius replied. He didn't feel like going to the hospital wing.

James came back a short while later, with a quite confused Lily behind him. She looked at Sirius and quickly flicked her wand at his arm a few times. Sirius felt a sharp pain as the bones shifted, before it vanished altogether. He looked down and slowly moved his fingers and felt no pain whatsoever. Sirius then looked up at Lily and muttered a quick "thanks" before closing his eyes.

"Sirius, what happened? Who did that to your arm?" she enquired.

Sirius sighed, but before he could open his mouth, the portrait swung open to reveal Remus. He still had that you-_really_-don't-want-to-mess-with-me-right-now look on his face, but he didn't look as livid as he had been before…just.

"M…Moony? Are you all right? You don't have to tell us, of cour…"

"No, I'll tell you. After all, _he_ already knows" Remus cut in, his eyes narrowing as they trailed over Sirius.

Remus then sighed before telling the others everything Trent had told him. To say they were shocked would be an understatement. Sirius, of course, knew what had been said, and he had the excellent idea of keeping his mouth shut, trying his hardest to not be put off by feeling Remus' eyes penetrating through the back of his head. James, Lily and Peter listened in silence as Remus explained the message that the Death Eaters left for him, and why they did it.

When he came to the part about Regulus, James himself was nearly shaking with anger about what Sirius' younger brother had done. James then told the others about Trent somehow knowing that the werewolves were there. Neither of the group could come up with a single explanation for _how_ he did it.

* * *

Remus had separated himself from Sirius, and only sat with him during classes. At meals, he would sit at the opposite end of the table, while he would leave the common room if Sirius came into it. Sirius was deeply troubled by it, as Remus hadn't done this even after fifth year (he had instead just refused to talk to, or even acknowledge the presence of, Sirius, but still remained in their little group). James and Peter tried to cheer him up, but Sirius still had this painful look on his face whenever he saw Remus walk away. 

He and James had the hardest time trying not to curse Regulus every time they saw him, and it was only Peter and Lily's insistence that what Remus would think of them if they actually did it that prevented them from drawing their wands. The same thing was happening with Remus every time he and Severus crossed paths. Only instead of Peter and Lily calming him down, it was Trent's words of 'it wasn't his intention' that kept ringing through his mind whenever he felt his hand twitch to reach for his wand.

In wasn't until four days later that Sirius was able to stay in the same room as the young werewolf without him leaving. Sirius hadn't tried talking to Remus since the night he broke his arm, mainly because of the loathing look Remus gave him every time he caught his eye.

Sirius had slumped into the lounge in James' common room after Remus had left, informing Peter and James that he wanted to go to the library. Both wizards moved over and sat down either side of Sirius who let out a long sigh before closing his eyes.

"We should really teach your brother a lesson, Padfoot."

"How, James. By trying to kill him? In case you haven't noticed, Moony isn't exactly talking to me right now, and I reckon he'd want to do that to him."

"He hasn't hexed you into oblivion either yet" Peter quipped.

"Shut up, Wormtail."

"No Sirius, Peter's right. There has to be a way to get Moony to talk to you. At least he stays in the same room as you now."

Sirius snorted, "great, that's a fantastic way to make me feel better, Prongs."

"Stop being a prat, Sirius. Remus doesn't hate you, all right. You'd know if he did" Peter retorted.

James looked highly amused while Sirius was stunned. "You…you've never called me _that_ before. But you're right, I just hope he forgives me before the year's over."

"So do we, Padfoot. Our group just isn't the same right now" James mused.

* * *

Remus made his way towards the library before an idea struck him. He didn't want to talk to his friends, but he thought a chat with Trent might help him a bit. He waited in one of the hallways, and soon saw Trent coming down on his patrol. 

"Mr Lupin? What brings you here?" he asked in surprise.

"I…I need to talk to you. It's about Sirius."

Trent nodded before silently leading the young wizard into a classroom. After locking the door and casting a silencing charm, he waited for Remus to begin.

"Why did you say that it wasn't Snape's intention?"

"I thought you wanted to talk about Sirius?"

"I do, but I want to know this first."

Trent looked at Remus curiously before sighing. "Very well. I didn't know the full details, still don't I guess. I overheard him and Macnair talking just before Christmas, and he told Macnair that he was disappointed with what had happened, and that he only wanted to scare you."

"Then why hasn't he told me that? Why does he keep goading me?"

"I can't really answer that, Remus."

"Well, why do you think he hasn't then?"

"I honestly don't know. Macnair told him afterwards what better way to scare you than what actually happened. He then started laughing, with Snape joining in, but it was rather forced. I got the impression that he doesn't really like his father that much."

Remus didn't look convinced, but let the matter drop when he then told Trent about Sirius. "I know what happened. Why did you lie?"

Trent looked at Remus, and found his eyes holding quite a degree of accusation in them. He sighed before thinking about how to best answer Remus' question.

"I did not think the Headmaster would like me telling him that a student had just been attacked by three werewolves. Centaurs attack adults, and since Sirius is of age, I felt it was a viable excuse. I did not expect you and James to believe it, however."

Remus nodded. "He heard everything."

Trent sighed again as Remus continued, "I…I just can't believe he'd betray me like that!"

"Is 'betrayal' the right word, Remus?"

The young wizard snapped his head around and looked at Trent like he had two heads.

"Of course it is! He heard me say I wanted to hear what you had to say alone, yet he stayed where he was. Unless 'betrayal' has a new meaning, I think it _is_ the right word" he hissed at the Auror.

"Define 'integrity' for me."

"Integrity? Well, it means to be honest, at all times."

"Let me tell you my definition. Integrity is when your character is tested. Stay true and never be ashamed of doing what is right. Did Sirius lie to you when he told you?"

"He was going…" Remus started, but the Auror cut him off.

"Answer the question, Remus. Did. He. Lie?"

"No, he didn't. But that doesn't make it right!"

"I never said it did, but Sirius thought otherwise. Would you have told them what I told you, in time?"

Remus slowly nodded his head.

"Then has he _really_ betrayed you?

"Deceive _might_ be a better word, but it basically means the same thing" the young werewolf admitted. His voice then took on some anger. "He still shouldn't have been there! We _told_ him we had detention with you! Why did he decide to follow us!"

"I don't think _I'm_ the person you should be asking."

"I know, but I'm not talking to _him_ at the moment" he retorted.

"That is unfortunate."

"Unfortunate? Unfortunate that he betrayed me!" Remus asked in disbelief.

"No. It is unfortunate that two friends are not talking to each other. This is exactly what Voldemort wants" Trent replied, choosing not to correct Remus' use of the word 'betrayal'. He didn't want to anger him more than he already was.

Remus looked confused. "I…I don't understand."

Trent smiled grimly before responding "to have friends doubting each other. To have them break apart from one another. It makes his job of terrorising everyone much easier if you don't know who you can trust in these times."

"Are…are you saying that…that I shouldn't trust you, either?"

Trent closed his eyes, thinking about his answer. He opened them and stared into Remus' eyes, hazel meeting brown.

"That is your choice, Remus. I can give you advice, but it is up to you whether or not to listen to it. I trust you, and your friends. Whether or not you choose to trust me is your decision. Do you still wish to be friends with Sirius?"

Remus nodded.

"Then tell him what you just told me. Tell him that you still want to be friends, but you aren't sure how long it will take to be able to fully trust him again. It's in times of darkness that you learn who your real friends are, Remus."

Trent then removed the charms from the room, and walked outside leaving Remus alone to ponder what they had talked about. Remus elected to head back to Gryffindor tower to sleep on it before deciding what he should do.


	17. Chapter 17 – Is It Worth It?

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

If you know Order of the Phoenix quite well, you should 'get' this chapter. I'll even help you out; Sirius mentions it…or should I say 'yells' it. He also says it in Prisoner now that I think about it…sort of.

So, why aren't Severus' father, Regulus and Severus himself all sitting in a cosy little cell in Azkaban? Trent only overheard them talking about it, he doesn't have enough evidence to convict them (Severus and Regulus would not have known that Remus was to be targeted, and Severus' Dad may have only _organised_ it, not carried it out). Hope that helps out with any queries about that little bit.

I did mention in BotE that Severus owed Remus…this was why. He didn't intend for Remus' parents to be killed, but of course he'd never actually _tell_ him that considering the whole Gryffindor – Slytherin rivalry. He did send Remus a letter like Harry's though…any guesses to its contents (and no, I do not intend to write it. That story was about Harry, not Remus)?

* * *

**Chapter 17 – Is It Worth It?**

"You ready, Sirius?" Trent asked as he spotted Sirius at the castle doors waiting for him.

The young wizard nodded, "I guess so. I…I mean we…we're only patrolling, right?"

Trent smirked, "of course. Let's go."

Sirius didn't think he liked the look Trent had on his face, but decided to ignore it as Trent pushed open the front doors and stepped outside. Again Trent headed to the Quidditch pitch, but this time, he detoured into one of the changing rooms. After locking the door and putting up a silencing charm, he turned and faced the young wizard.

"Did you tell anyone what really happened?"

Sirius was about to say that he hadn't, and that Remus had figured it out, but the look in Trent's eyes told him that he should probably just say yes. He nodded instead.

"I thought so. But I'll guess that you didn't need to tell them, and that they probably interrogated you or something. I assume you'd like to know how I recognised you, correct?"

Sirius nodded again.

"Not your normal talkative self I see. Wise move, Sirius."

Trent then thought about how he wanted to word this. He didn't want to tell Sirius that he knew about the three of them being animagi, and Remus a werewolf...yet. He had to come up with something believable too, or else Sirius would be suspicious.

"I overheard something right at the end of the conversation between Remus and Severus last week. It was after Severus had left. James said the word 'Padfoot', after Remus had asked whether or not he should ask you to be his second. Now, I was a little surprised by this, because I couldn't see how you could have that as a nickname.

"But when I saw you last week, it all fell into place. You're named after the Dog Star, and your friends must have named you that in honour of it. Since dogs are not native to the forest, I guessed that what I came across was you in animagus form. Knowing that the four of you are such good friends, I don't know how you managed to keep this secret from them, but I certainly won't be the one who tells them."

Sirius released a breath. Trent didn't know about the others, he thought that only he, Sirius, was an animagus. He decided to let Trent believe that since he didn't want to betray his friends' trust, like he had done twice now with Remus.

Sirius turned his attention back to Trent who asked, "now, perhaps you'd care to explain exactly how much you overheard last week."

Sirius hung his head in shame. Trent used this opportunity to cast a secrecy charm over both himself and the young wizard, without Sirius knowing.

"Everything. Even the bit about the message in Remus' bedroom."

"Good, you are honest."

Sirius looked at him in confusion before Trent continued, "Remus came to me yesterday and told me what happened."

"Oh" he replied, before staring at the ground.

"Yes, and you somehow managed to go a whole week without maiming your brother. I'm quite impressed, Sirius" Trent replied, a light chuckle escaping his lips.

"I could say the same about Remus doing that to me. But it wasn't easy, believe me. I just can't believe my own _brother_ would do that!"

"And Remus couldn't believe you'd listen in on a _private_ conversation, either. I doubt Regulus could believe that you'd want to attempt to kill Severus too. We all make mistakes, Sirius."

Sirius snapped his head up, his eyes flashing with anger. "Regulus knew _exactly_ what he was doing! He knew Remus would be targeted because of…it! _Don't_ tell me it was a mistake!"

"Why weren't you targeted also then? Apparently, Remus wasn't sure if he was part of whatever plot you did" Trent countered.

"I…I don't know" he said, realising he had almost let slip about Remus' lycanthropy.

"It's all right, Sirius. I believe I can guess what happened. You told Severus where Remus goes every month, didn't you."

Sirius jerked his head up again, "WHAT! How…how do you…"

"I am aware of what Remus is, Sirius. Even if I wasn't already, I certainly would have been after last week."

"How?"

"Did you forget that I was present with your Boggarts? I saw what Remus' greatest fear was. And after last week, when he didn't want to go near the dead wolves? Not because of shock, but because they were coated in silver ink. Plus the fact that the four of you always escape the castle every full moon. Did you not think that as an Auror, I _would_ notice these things?"

"I…we…no, we didn't. You won't tell anyone…will you?" he stammered.

Trent snorted, "which bit? The fact that you run around the grounds all night without permission, or the fact the three of you are unregistered animagi?"

Sirius' eyes widened, but Trent merely smiled before answering.

"You don't have to worry. I can't tell anyone without your permission."

"What do you mean? Why would you need _my_ permission?"

"Because I have cast a secrecy charm over the two of us. Everything we've been saying will only stay between us two. You won't be able to tell your friends, and I can't inform anyone about you four either."

Trent knew the last bit was a lie, he could tell anyone about them, as Sirius himself hadn't told him. But he wanted to reassure Sirius that anything they discussed tonight would be kept between the two of them. But he had promised them to keep their secret…even if they couldn't remember it as Trent had erased their memories of that night.

Sirius nodded, then asked a question they all had from that night. "How did you know that the werewolves were there?"

"I sensed their presence."

"How? Remus said he didn't pick anything up, and his senses are heighte…um, you're not a werewolf…are you?" Sirius asked, quite nervously. The thought that a fully grown werewolf could have better senses than a teenage one, only just occurred to him.

Trent just laughed, "Merlin, no! I can sense people's magical signature, something which also extends to magical creatures. I can also identify those who I know. That was another reason how I recognised you last week."

"Can you teach me how to do that?"

"No, it would take too long. You've only got a few months before you graduate. If you get accepted into the Auror training though…I might consider it."

Trent gave Sirius a grin, which the young man returned.

"What kind of training does it involve?"

"Well, you already know what subjects you have to be skilled in. The training itself depends on what type of Auror you want to be."

"What types are there? I thought all of you would go out and fight."

"Not all conflicts are solved by brute strength, Sirius. Aurors have to also be able to peacefully solve situations, and some can do that better than others. Most of us fight, yes, but you also need people to train the younger Aurors."

"So you basically take on an apprentice then?"

Trent shook his head, "no, I mean you've got people whose job it is to teach, exactly like a Professor."

Sirius stood in silence before asking "do you think we'll win?"

"What, the war?"

Sirius nodded, and Trent had a grim smile on his face.

"No one _wins_ a war, Sirius. You can only count the losses, for both sides. But, if you mean whether Voldemort himself will be defeated, then yes I know he will be."

"How could you possibly _know_?"

"Light must always triumph over darkness, for how can it end any other way?"

Sirius admitted Trent made a valid point before asking "have you fought him, one on one?"

Trent chuckled, "no, and I hope I don't."

"Why not? You're fantastic at fighting. You said so when you were talking with Remus. That you guys were the only country to drive him away."

"Which was made easier by the fact that Voldemort himself wasn't there. He thought we were weak so we were one of the first overseas communities he attacked. I also told Remus that we joined forces with the muggles. We outnumbered them by quite some margin."

"But you said you can sense people right? So can't you sense V…Vol…Voldemort?"

"Oh yes, I can sense him all right."

"Then why don't you just…"

"What, Sirius. You want me to just go after him, do you? In case you haven't noticed, he is quite powerful. We have to organise our defences" Trent snapped.

Sirius snorted. "What defences? You aren't _doing_ anything! You're just standing around here waiting for him to strike! Why can't you go out and get _them_ for a change!"

Trent glared at the young wizard in front of him. Again his features took on those that Remus found to be rather intimidating last week. "It's not that simple, Sirius. For starters, we don't know where he will next strike, so how can we get _them_ if we don't know where _they_ are?"

"You said you can sense Voldem…"

"So what? I'm in no position to go after him. My orders are to stay here and protect the school. I'm not finding it easy watching all those owls coming in every week either, Sirius."

A silence followed Trent's response before Sirius next spoke.

"Would you go after him, though? If you could, I mean."

"No, it would be a waste of time."

"How can you say that! What if you can kill him? How would that be…"

"I highly doubt any single person could penetrate _all_ his defences and _then_ defeat him. My death would be in vain, Sirius. In time you will realise that there are some things worth fighting for…worth _dying_ for. Others are not."

"Like what?"

Trent sighed. "You wouldn't understand."

"Don't give me that rubbish! Tell me and find out!" he demanded.

"Very well. Imagine this scenario; you are happily married, and come home one night to find your wife murdered by Death Eaters. What would you do?"

"Hunt them down and kill them" Sirius replied instantly.

"And if you found out it was Voldemort who did it personally?"

"Same thing."

"Even knowing that Dumbledore himself has been unable to defeat him, you would still pursue that course of action?"

"I wo…I…don't know" he hesitantly answered.

"Exactly my point. Since you overheard the talk I had with Remus, then you'd know about my fiancé, correct?"

Sirius nodded.

"Well then, just before my self imposed three month exile, I _did_ hunt down those responsible, and I _did_ kill them. It didn't make me feel any better though. Anger and hate can only take you so far, Sirius. Once it stops, you have to face the consequences."

"Which are?"

"The fact that no matter what I did, she wasn't coming back."

Sirius pondered that information and a silence came between them before the young wizard asked,

"So what is worth dying for then?"

"To protect something, or someone" Trent answered.

Sirius rolled his eyes and made to reply, but Trent stopped him. "Would you die for your friends?"

He nodded.

"Then you should understand, Sirius. Friendship _is_ something worth dying for. So is love."

He could only nod dumbly as he tried to make sense of everything the Auror told him.

Another silence followed, broken when Trent sighed.

"Do you know what it feels like, to _feel_ evil?"

Sirius shook his head, so Trent continued "let me tell you then. It's when you can feel the hairs on the back of your neck prickle for no apparent reason. It's when the very air you breathe feels like poison. You can feel it in your bones. A coldness, the dread, knowing all you can do is watch and wait. It isn't pleasant, Sirius. I can feel the hatred and anger Voldemort has, his aura reeks of it. He _is_ evil, plain and simple. I have never felt anything like it before."

Another silence followed before Sirius remembered something Remus had told them several months ago, after Trent had taught their Charms class more about the Patronus charm.

"We reckon we can sense yours too."

Trent looked taken aback. "Wh…what?"

Sirius nodded, "Remus told us that for some reason he just felt safe around you. As if no harm could come to those when you're around."

"I feel the same way around your Headmaster" Trent replied with a slight smile on his face.

He then continued, "well, if you want my opinion, I'd say you just know the difference between being around evil and being around good. Although I'd hardly put myself in _that_ category."

"Why not? You're an Auror for Merlin's sake! You _are_ good!"

Trent gave Sirius a wry smile before responding "perhaps, but as an Auror we are allowed to use the Unforgivables, something I have no problem with whatsoever. I used them willingly on those werewolves last week. That's hardly what you'd call Light wizard material."

Sirius was about to argue, but found he didn't really have anything to say. After an awkward pause, Trent then decided it was time to leave.

"Now, what do you say we get of here and start this patrol? You'll have to tell me which shops are the best to visit in Hogsmeade. It'll be the first time since being here that I'll be part of the team that's going with you next weekend."

Sirius nodded, and after Trent had removed the charms from the room, they exited. During the patrol, Sirius did his best to stay out of Trent's way, in case anything like last week happened, but also informed him of which shops he might like, with Zonko's being mentioned numerous times.


	18. Chapter 18 – Comeuppance

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

That little conversation becomes quite key in a couple chapters time (now _there's_ a hint!). As for why they feel safe around Trent…he said it's because they know the difference between good and evil. If you've read Dormant, you'll know _exactly_ what I meant.

Another warning; Remus undergoes his usual moonlight transformation. Things don't quite go according to plan though…'nuf said?

Oh, before I forget, I'm taking a break from posting for a bit (three weeks at the most) due to GoF being released in the movies. So, until then…

* * *

**Chapter 18 – Comeuppance**

Sirius spent most of the next day trying to answer James and Peter's questions about what he did during his patrol with Trent. He was stunned to see exactly how well the secrecy charm worked. Every time he tried telling them what really happened, all he could say was that they had discussed the options Aurors have once they begin their training, and how disappointed Trent was in him for overhearing his private conversation with Remus. When he was asked if they discussed how Trent knew the werewolves were there, Sirius shook his head saying that he forgot to ask.

It was also the day that Remus made his decision concerning Sirius and how best to approach him. He had asked Sirius if he would meet with him the next day in their dorms as he had something extremely urgent to talk with him about. Sirius screwed up all his courage to ask what it was about, but Remus stubbornly told him that he'd find out tomorrow.

It was therefore a rather cautious Sirius who made his way into the seventh year dorms where he spotted Remus pacing in front of his bed. He stopped when he saw Sirius, and the few other final years students quickly exited the dorm, clearly expecting fireworks from the two former best friends.

"Thank you, Sirius. Please, sit down" he said, gesturing for him to sit on his bed which Sirius duly did.

Remus also sat down and quickly put up some charms to allow them privacy before turning to his friend and sighing. "Padfoot. Look, you _have_ to remember what happened in our fifth year."

Sirius nodded.

"Then you'll know how upset I was at you then."

Again, Sirius nodded.

"It took me quite a few months to forgive you for that and to start trusting you again. Now you've gone and done this…" Remus let his voice trail off.

"I'm sorry, Moony. I never should've followed you and Prongs. I didn't mean to overhear, it just…sort of…happened."

"I would've told the three of you what Trent said, but only when I was ready to," Remus then slammed his fist on his bedside table, "Damn it, Sirius, you could've just left and come back later!"

He then slouched back on his bed. "I…I still want to be friends, Sirius. I don't want the four of us to break apart because of this."

Sirius heaved an enormous sigh of relief. Remus didn't hate him after all.

"But, I don't know how long it will be before I trust you…like I did before."

Sirius nodded. He expected something like that. He then spoke, "does this mean that the prank is back on then?"

Remus looked highly confused, so Sirius explained. "We have to get my useless git of a brother back for this. You willing to help us?"

Remus just shook his head in amazement, "that is just so…you, Sirius! Always thinking about pranks. I don't think we should do that to Regulus..."

"But he's the reason it happened! Don't you…"

"Look, Sirius. I'm aware of his involvement, but I don't think hexing him into next week is the right way to go about it. Just…don't do anything to him, please? For the sake of our friendship."

Sirius sighed, "all right, Moony, you might be right. I can't promise I won't do it though. You should probably hope we don't see him for a while or you'll have to petrify me!"

Remus smiled weakly. "I suspect you'll have to do the same when I see Snape."

"You've got a deal, Moony!" he replied, smiling in return.

The two of them then stood up and left the room, with Sirius feeling much better knowing his friend didn't hate him, and he promised himself that it would be the last time he would ever betray Remus.

* * *

A couple of nights later, and Remus was again led to the Whomping Willow for his monthly transformation. While he and Sirius had made up, Remus couldn't help but feel hurt that his trust in Sirius had been misplaced yet again. At the time, he was glad to have broken his friends' arm, a feeling that had yet to subside. And that thought, wanting to cause Sirius pain, bugged Remus no end. Both James and Peter had tried to reason with him, and say that they would have done exactly the same thing in his position, and that Sirius had been lucky to only come away with a broken arm, a fact that even Sirius had agreed with. 

While Remus was pacing around in his room in the Shrieking Shack, he was not fully aware of what effect these thoughts would have on his transformation tonight. Again, the pain originated around his bite mark, before spreading to every part of his body. A minute passed, with his friends waiting patiently outside, listening to his anguished cries. Ever since they had become animagi, and despite having seen Remus' bloodied and crumpled naked body lying on the floor at sunrise once, he still refused them from seeing him having to go through his gruesome change from human to wolf.

They waited for a while longer until they heard a howl from the other side of the door. Wormtail jumped from Prongs' head and landed on the doorknob. He then wrapped his tail around the handle and leapt off it, lowering the handle for Prongs to nudge open the door with his antlers. The little rat then dropped down and landed on the stag's head, looking at his wolfish friend in curiosity. He didn't know what it was, but he feared that something was amiss.

Moony looked up as the door opened, and the wolf's mind slowly relaxed as he recognised his 'pack'. As he followed the stag and rat outside, he froze with what greeted his sight; Padfoot. Remus felt the wolf build up even more within him, and felt horribly scared. He could do very little to control his actions, but his friends, mainly Prongs and Padfoot, could usually restrain him if the situation called for it. The only major exceptions had been when they first accompanied Remus, and after the Snape incident where Moony had managed to have quite a fierce battle with Padfoot, with both having several scars as reminders of that night.

It was that particular memory which frightened Remus the most. He knew the reason he had attacked Sirius then was because the wolf felt violated. So it was no surprise when he let out a soft growl and felt his hackles begin to rise when he saw the familiar canine. Prongs turned his head around and, if it were possible, glared at the wolf, effectively telling him that if he messed with one of them, then he messed with them all.

Remus felt Moony agree, but knew it would only be a matter of time before he attacked Padfoot again. Once they were out of the confines of the shack, not even Prongs' size would be able to stop that from happening. The three animagi, and even Remus himself, had a feeling that Moony might try to do this, but they weren't prepared for the moment to arrive basically straight away.

No sooner had they exited the tunnel, with Prongs making sure he was between Moony and Padfoot, the werewolf pounced. He leapt clean over the stag, and landed on the back of the unsuspecting dog. Normally considered a playful gesture by the wolf, but this time it was Moony, and not Remus, who was clearly in control.

The only indication that Padfoot had before he yelped, was another growl from his friend before the large weight landed on his back. Padfoot felt Moony sinking his claws and teeth into him. The dog whined, and tried to bite back, but Moony had him pinned this time. He kept hitting the top of the wolf's head with his paws, trying to get him to stop, but to no avail.

Prongs had seen more than enough and, after Wormtail had disembarked from his head, charged the two canines, ramming his antlers into Moony. This only caused both Padfoot and Moony to roll into the bushes, where the dog was finally able to wrestle the initiative away from the wolf. Prongs came quickly to his aid and was rewarded as Moony took a swipe at him with one of his paws. The message was loud and clear; stay out of it, this is between me and him.

The stag slowly backed away, mindful to keep a close watch on his two friends. Eventually, Remus was able to gain a semblance of control over Moony, and Padfoot slowly allowed him to sit up. The wolf cocked his head to the side, looking at Padfoot who was bleeding from his muzzle, chest and back, before closing his eyes in sorrow.

Moony then slinked away from his friends, tail tucked firmly between his legs, heading back towards the Whomping Willow. He didn't want to take any chances of having another fight with Padfoot. Prongs and Wormtail followed him, and shut the werewolf in his room before heading back outside to a waiting Sirius.

"Merlin, he got you good, didn't he!" James exclaimed as he transformed back.

"Ruddy hell, he hasn't been that bad before" Sirius replied before wincing as his adrenalin faded away, leaving only the fresh pain from his wounds.

"Are you all right to get back to the castle, or do you want to go to the hospital wing?"

"I'm not going there, Peter! Lily can fix me up, can't she?"

"I'm not sure, Padfoot. Some of those scratches look nasty" James answered.

"Hex him, Sirius" Peter suddenly said.

Both James and Sirius looked at him in confusion and Peter rolled his eyes. "If both of you go to the hospital wing, it would take any suspicions off of Remus. Hex Prongs so it looks believable."

"That's not a bad idea, Wormtail. Go on Sirius, do it" James replied, gritting his teeth for the expected onslaught.

"Are you sure, James? I mean, I don't want to hurt…"

"Madam Pomfrey can fix it all up, just do it! Peter can escort us both there, all right" he interrupted.

Sirius nodded before pointing his wand at his best friend.

* * *

When Remus woke up in the familiar surroundings of the hospital wing, he groaned as he remembered pieces of last night. He wasn't prepared for when a voice nearby spoke. 

"Totally agree, Moony. But I understand why you did that to Padfoot, and it's alright, he deserved it."

"Hey, I didn't say _that_!"

"P…Prongs? Padfoot? What're you both doing here?"

"Diversion tactics courtesy of Peter" James replied.

Sirius continued after seeing Remus' baffled expression. "He figured that if I hex James, and we both get sent here, any suspicions that people may have on you would be ignored since we jinx each other all the time."

"Oh, good idea," his face then fell and he managed to croak out "how…how bad was I? Last night, I mean?"

"We'll tell you in my common room, Moony. Let's just say that you can be vicious when you want to be" James replied before both he and Sirius walked over to the door.

"Madam Pomfrey said that we're able to leave once we woke up, but we wanted to talk with you first" he added.

Remus nodded in reply and watched his two friends exit the hospital wing. He then heard Madam Pomfrey's footsteps, and quickly shut his eyes and did his best to pretend to be asleep.

* * *

After Remus had been released from Madam Pomfrey's care, he headed straight to the Head Students' dorm, eager to hear exactly what had happened last night. He knew it was bad from the pained looks his friends gave him when he asked, and had been stunned into silence for quite some time after they had finished telling him. 

He was still in shock for most of the next day also, but as the four of them were heading towards the Great Hall for dinner, something jolted him back to reality.

Regulus Black was also making his way to dinner, and was soon spotted by Sirius, who quickly broke out of James' grasp and slammed his brother against the stone wall.

"You listen here you pathetic, cowardly excuse of a wizard" Sirius spat, revelling in the fear in Regulus' eyes. "I know what you did, and rest assured, I _will_ make you pay for doing that to Remus' parents, you snivelling little…"

"Sirius, let him go."

"Sorry, James, but I'm quite busy right now" he snarled before turning his attention back to Regulus who was starting to quiver in fear with the dangerous gleam in his brothers' eye.

"Now where was I…ah yes, I remember now. If I _ever_ catch wind of you doing something like that again to _any_ of my friends, I'll do something a lot worse than what I'm about to do right now."

Sirius then pulled his right arm back and swung with all his might. A sickening crunch was heard as his fist connected with Regulus' jaw. Sirius then dropped him on the floor and proceeded to punch and kick him with everything he had. Trent and two other Aurors had seen this, and moved to help the younger Black, while James, Peter and Remus all tried to pull the now enraged Sirius off Regulus, who had curled up into a ball on the floor trying to absorb the blows as painlessly as possible.

In the end, one of the Aurors petrified Sirius who fell to the ground, stiff as a board. Trent then led the four Gryffindors into an empty classroom, while the other two attended to Regulus and helped him to the hospital wing.

"You should not have done that, Sirius" Trent calmly said as he removed the spell.

"It's not like he didn't deserve it" Sirius spat.

"You didn't do anything last week."

"I don't care! Remus' parents were killed because of _him_!"

"He's your brother…"

"NO! I left my family. This is my _real_ family!" Sirius shouted as he gestured to his three friends.

"Sirius, listen…"

"No, _you_ listen! I don't care what you have to say! You know he deserved it. And if you think otherwise, then you're the most pathetic excuse for an Auror I've _ever_ met!"

With that, Sirius stormed out the door, slamming it behind him.

Trent just sighed before facing Peter, Remus and James, who each had shocked looks on their faces. "You lot might want to go after him. He certainly won't listen to me right now."

They nodded and quickly ran outside trying to catch Sirius up.


	19. Chapter 19 – Forgiven, But Not Forgotten

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Ok, slight change in plan; I'll get this fic fully posted by Xmas. There are 3 chapters plus a timeline to go, so…consider it an early pressie for those who have enjoyed reading it, lolol!

Well, _I_ certainly wasn't letting Regulus off lightly…and nor was Moony going to do the same with Padfoot.

A bit more battle action…kind of!

* * *

**Chapter 19 – Forgiven, But Not Forgotten**

The weekend came, and since Lily had decided to spend this trip with her friends, this left the Marauders to spend the day doing what they do best; planning pranks. They went to Zonko's so James and Sirius could stock up on supplies, before heading over the Honeydukes to satisfy both Peter's and Remus' addiction to sweets and chocolate. They had settled themselves at a table inside The Three Broomsticks, with Madam Rosmerta coming back with four butterbeers.

As they sipped the delicious drink, Sirius smiled and leant back in his chair.

"You seem to be in a good mood, Sirius."

"That would be because I am, James. Thumping Regulus must have had something to do…"

"That was still a stupid thing to do!"

"I know, Remus. But I have to say it felt ruddy good!"

"That's no excuse for what you did though" Remus countered. While he understood why Sirius had done that to Regulus, he was still a little disappointed that his friend had been unable to control his actions.

"Whatever. Besides, I've seen the looks you've been giving Snivellus…"

"That's completely different!"

"How?"

"He hasn't slugged him" Peter quipped, shooting Remus a grin.

"Not yet anyway!" Sirius added, grinning as well.

"Shut up, Peter. I'd like to see how you'd react in my position" Remus snapped back.

"He's got you there, Peter. Might I suggest something, Remus?"

Remus looked questionably at James and waited for him to continue.

"He wouldn't notice a broken nose…"

"That's because _you_ ordered one of your beaters to smack a bludger at him last year, _despite_ him sitting in the stands!"

"I most certainly did _not_ do that, Remus! I merely suggested that if the opportunity arose…"

"I have to say though, it was an excellent shot!" Sirius announced, fondly remembering that moment.

"True, what do you say we head somewhere to plan a few pranks?" Peter replied, as he finished his bottle, deciding to abruptly change the topic of discussion.

The other three nodded in agreement, before sculling the rest of their butterbeer and heading out the door. Sirius had again led them to the small cave that he had stumbled upon two years ago. They didn't notice exactly how much time had passed until they walked outside and discovered it was nearing sunset. Sirius motioned for his friends to follow him, claiming that he knew a shortcut back to the centre of Hogsmeade.

* * *

"You _sure_ you know where you're going, Padfoot?" Remus asked as Sirius led them down yet another alley. They had currently 'wasted' about twenty minutes trudging back into town. 

"Yes, yes. I know these streets like the back of my head" Sirius replied, finally stepping out into the more familiar parts of Hogsmeade.

"Well, that explains why they're empty" James mused, while Peter struggled to not laugh.

A slight breeze rustled the leaves along the road they were standing in and Remus felt the hairs on the back of his neck start to prickle.

"Prongs actually has a good point. Where _is_ everyone?" he asked as he nervously looked around the now vacant streets.

"I don't like this. I don't like this at all. You don't think they left without us, do you?" Peter added, now looking just as nervous as Remus.

"Let's just head back to the castle, all right" James answered, his eyes darting around, looking for any signs of trouble.

"Shrieking Shack passage?" Sirius suggested.

Remus shook his head. He didn't like the feeling of impending disaster one little bit, but decided to try and lighten the mood, "nah. If we hurry, we should be able to catch up with the others before they notice we're gone. I can still smell Snape's greasy hair!"

The others grinned as he said this. Remus then quickened his pace with the others following suit. As they rounded the last corner that led back to Hogwarts, they froze with what they heard, and then saw.

"Why the hurry to leave? We haven't even had the chance to _play_!"

There were ten people wearing black robes and masks blocking their exit; Death Eaters. Laughter rang out through the empty street, and the four teenagers all looked at each other with differing expressions. James and Sirius both had determined looks on their faces, and Remus could see that they had gripped their wands tighter than normal. Peter had a look of pure fear, he didn't know what to do. Remus himself had a look of resignation on his face, as if he knew he wouldn't make it back to Hogwarts but was willing to give it his all anyway. Remus now wished he had listened to Sirius, if they'd gone via the Shrieking Shack, they wouldn't be in this situation.

One of the Death Eaters raised their wand, but before they could utter a spell, a new voice cut through the air, "Resorting to duelling students? How utterly pathetic."

The lead Death Eater didn't lower their wand, but looked around before shouting, "WHO DARES TO SAY THAT? I DEMAND YOU TO SHOW YOURSELF FOOL!"

There was a bang from nearby as a door flew open, and someone suddenly stepped out of the doorway. Peter gasped as he recognised the familiar sight of Trent. One look at his face, and Peter knew that he was more than ready to do battle.

"I dare" he spoke in a dangerously low voice that sent a shiver down all four of the students' spines.

Trent then slowly made his way into the street until he was the only thing standing between the Death Eaters and the four Gryffindors.

"What are you going to do, _Auror_. You can't disapparate as we've put up wards and you're also outnumbered. You're as good as dead" the lead Death Eater said, his voice full of venom.

"That remains to be seen, _Death Eater_" Trent spat back, before slowly withdrawing his wand.

Sirius still clutched his own wand tightly, and was very surprised when Trent's voice appeared in his mind.

'Sirius, listen up, here's what you're going to do. I am a telepath, that's how I'm speaking with you right now. There's a gap between the trees and the Death Eaters on my left. I'm going to put on a little light show for our _friends_ here. The moment I raise my wand, you four need to shut your eyes. After I finish the spell, you and the others open your eyes and sprint straight for that gap. Don't stop running until you reach the gates, and for Merlin's sake _don't_ look behind you. Get ready, I'll give you about ten seconds to tell your friends that they'll need to shut their eyes. Oh, and yes you can tell them about me being telepathic. Goodbye.'

Sirius gulped, then he whispered "psst, you three. Shut your eyes when Trent raises his wand!"

The others looked confused but nodded when they saw the sincere look in Sirius' eyes. They looked at Trent and saw him lift his wand up. The four students then shut their eyes, wondering what Trent was doing.

They then heard him say, "Thanks for giving me the first shot. SOLARIS BURSTAN!"

Trent then grabbed Sirius and yanked him to his feet.

"Go now! While they can't see!"

"But what about y…" James began, but Trent cut him off

"There's no time! Sirius knows the way, just hurry! Don't stop until Sirius does. GO!" Trent hissed.

Sirius then nodded at his friends before the four of them took off. They passed by the Death Eaters, who were either shielding their eyes, or blinking rapidly. They heard a few say "what happened? I can't see!" as they ran past. Not bothering to look behind him, Sirius continued to run.

Eventually he reached the gate and he slowed to a halt, panting furiously. He looked up the road, and watched as his three friends quickly came into view, with Peter being the last to arrive. Finally, after catching their breath by the gates, James, hands still on his knees, asked the most obvious question,

"What…what just happened?"

"Trent just saved our lives, that's what! He wanted us to get away. That's what he told me."

"Told you? When?" Peter asked.

"Just before he did…whatever spell he did."

"The solar burst charm. It's only used for a distraction" Remus answered.

"Hang on, how did he tell you? I didn't hear him say anything" James enquired.

"He's a telepath" Sirius simply replied.

"Really? Wow! Where is Trent anyway? I thought he'd be following us" Remus said, looking over his shoulder.

Sirius' eyes widened as he realised exactly what Trent had done. He slumped to the ground in disbelief.

"Sirius? What's wrong?" Peter asked.

"He…oh Merlin, he didn't!"

"Didn't what? Padfoot, what're you talking about?"

Sirius looked up at James before answering. "He's not coming back."

"WHAT!" three voices shouted simultaneously.

"He...he stayed behind. He knew that…that if he came with us, they'd follow us."

"You mean he's going to fight against ten Death Eaters by _himself_? He'll get killed!" James exclaimed.

Sirius nodded, "I know, and so did he. The last thing he said to me was 'goodbye'. Do you know what the last thing I told him was? I told him he was a pathetic excuse for an Auror! And now he goes and does this!"

Sirius was nearly in tears at this point, so Remus tried to get him to relax.

"Calm down, Sirius. You were a little angry at the time."

Sirius brushed his friend off. "Don't you get it, Moony? He's been everything _but_ useless! He befriended us when he didn't have to. He gave us additional lessons when he didn't have to. He…" Sirius felt his voice choke up as he tried to continue.

"He saved my…my life that night in the forest, and this…this is how I repaid him! I never even apologised to him!"

It was all too much. Sirius broke down, tears streaming down his face as he remembered how helpless he felt that night as the werewolves attacked him. How he thought he was going to die until Trent showed up. He slammed his fist into the grass in frustration.

Remus sat down beside his friend. "He forgave you, Sirius."

Sirius lifted his head, wiping the tears away with his sleeve. "How do you know that?"

"Simple. If he didn't, he never would've saved us just now" Remus replied.

Sirius snorted. "It's his job. He would've had to do it anyway."

"No he didn't. He could've left earlier with the others. He must've known we hadn't gone back yet. He was waiting in case something like this happened. His job was to protect us this year. That's what Dumbledore told us at the starting feast" James said.

Remus nodded, "and he did. He stopped that duel between me and Snape from ever starting when he saw what was going to happen to James. He was also one of the first there when my parents were killed. He told me what really happened. He comforted me."

"He helped me produce my Patronus. He was always there when we needed someone different to talk to" James added as he slowly slid down the gate post and onto the ground.

Sirius then recalled what Trent had told him; 'friendship _is_ something worth dying for.'

He now understood; Trent thought of them as friends, and he was prepared to die for them. Sirius closed his eyes, trying to stop more tears from forming as Peter continued where James stopped.

"He gave me self belief. He told me to try to look on the positive side of everything."

James nodded, "and he's right. Trent feared nothing, his Boggart proved that. He wouldn't want us moping around like we are right now. He was just doing his job as Padfoot said. The least we can do is have some fun in his honour. After all, in a couple of months, we won't be able to prank Snivellus anymore!"

Sirius barked out a hollow laugh, "I think we should do something more. Something that everyone will remember us by."

"Like what?" Remus warily asked.

Sirius grinned, "do what Trent did. Prank the whole school. Well not so much a prank, more a thank-you-for-putting-up-with-us-for-seven-years."

James nodded, "when?"

"The closing feast" Sirius replied.

James, Remus and Peter all grinned. James then stood up and pulled Sirius to his feet.

"Well then. We've got a fair bit of planning to do, don't we?"

The four of them headed back to the castle doors, each vowing to never forget what Trent had sacrificed for them.


	20. Chapter 20 – The Art Of Pranking By Moo

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

I hope you won't kill me when I introduce a new nickname…but it really does fit, _please_ believe me!

And I did tell you that the action started to pick up a bit. However, considering that Trent is loosely based on myself, I didn't find it terribly easy to do what I did to him…even knowing how it all turns out.

* * *

**Chapter 20 – The Art Of Pranking; By Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs**

"So, how are we going to do this, Padfoot? Who should we put in charge of organising it?" James asked, a few days after the Hogsmeade weekend. The four of them were all still quite sombre and hadn't really felt like studying for their upcoming NEWT's, hence the discussion had quickly turned to their final prank.

"Simple, we have a prank war."

"Against who?"

"Each other, Moony" Sirius replied.

"Are you serious!"

Sirius grinned in reply while Remus and Peter just rolled their eyes at James' question.

"But how are we going to judge this? Trent would've been the most obvious."

"Good point, Prongs. Maybe we can get Dumbledore or something."

"Why don't we just get all the Professors to judge it?"

"How so, Peter?" Remus enquired.

"Well, depending on what spells or potions we choose to use. Then the Professor who would most understand it can judge its effects."

"Brilliant idea, Wormtail! So, are we in?"

"Oh yes, I'm not missing out on this!" James answered with a grin.

"So, whoever wins gets to plan the leaving feast prank?"

Sirius nodded. "Exactly Moony."

"Alright, I'm game" Remus said with a smile.

Peter shrugged. "Well, if you three are in, then who am I to argue. We've got just under two months to sort this out, so how are we going to know who goes first?"

Sirius scratched his head. "Well, I've thought about that. We could write our names on a piece of parchment and mix them up. Then maybe Lily can choose the order. We'll then each have one full day to perform the prank on the rest. It has to be done to all three, and at the same time. Once we're done, we'll gather the final votes, and see who scored the highest. The one with the highest score gets to plan the leaving prank."

"You reckon the Professors will agree to this?" Remus asked.

"Of course they will. Once we tell them that we're only pranking each other and not anyone else" James replied.

* * *

The Professors and Lily had all agreed and the day came for the first Marauder to strut their stuff. The four of them didn't know what the order was, but were eyeing each other very carefully. They settled down at the table and started to help themselves to lunch. 

No sooner had Peter, Sirius and James taken a sip of their pumpkin juice, their eyes bulged as they realised it had been spiked. Remus raised his glass in mock salute and watched as the three of them disappeared behind a cloud of smoke.

When the smoke cleared, the three wizards were staring at each other in horror. Their robes had been transfigured into very revealing dresses, before they each began to dance. The three of them turned bright red as they performed several risqué moves, before leaping down the Gryffindor table and pulling people up to dance with them.

The three unlucky 'victims' were horrified by the exotic moves the Marauders were using, but everyone else seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely, even the Slytherins appeared amused with their antics.

By the time the dance came to an end the whole school was laughing loudly at the three embarrassed students, who all made a very hasty exit. Remus then stood up and accepted the accolades from everyone before deciding it might be best to stay in the hall until lunch was finished.

* * *

Day two started with a bang. No sooner had the four of them arrived in the Hall for breakfast, Peter smiled and pulled out an umbrella he'd borrowed from Lily. The other three looked up as a loud explosion caught their attention before they were rained on by some foul smelling potion that appeared to stick to their robes. To make matters worse, dead rose petals then showered down on them for a full two minutes. Once it had subsided, Peter could scarcely hide his laughter as his three friends blinked at him in surprise. 

He managed to say "you lot always do come out smelling like roses!" before bolting from the hall, leaving his three stunned friends left to face the roaring laughter of everyone else in the hall.

* * *

The third day of the 'Marauder War' saw the first non-Hall prank. As they arrived for their Herbology class, Remus, Peter and Sirius were smothered by a quite passive plant, which had been charmed to kiss them quite savagely. The three of them arrived at lunch with mysterious shaped love bites all over their faces, making the rest of Hogwarts avoid them at all costs, thinking they had contracted something contagious. James, though, found the whole thing quite hilarious, and was in stitches all day from laughing too much.

* * *

By the last day, everyone else had figured out what was going on, and were eagerly waiting to see what was going to happen today. Breakfast and lunch came and went, with nothing happening, which only heightened the anticipation for what dinner would hold. Sirius would not let them down.

The four of them arrived in the Great Hall, and had just entered when two loud rips were heard as Remus and Peter suddenly developed tails, while James sprouted a large set of antlers on his head. A few muffled laughs were heard as everyone waited to see if anything else would happen.

Sirius just grinned at James before loudly saying, "you know James, Lily always did say that you have a big head!"

This had the desired effect as everyone in the hall burst out laughing, including Remus and Peter, while James' face flushed red with embarrassment before he too joined in the laughter.

* * *

"It was unanimous, Padfoot. Moony won it fair and square, everyone said so!" James said. 

"I don't care! His was the most embarrassing of the lot!"

"That was the idea, and might I also add it was _your_ idea to begin with!" Remus reminded him.

"Lighten up, Sirius. Maybe if we ask Moony _really_ nicely, he'll let us help him" Peter suggested.

Remus rolled his eyes "that was what I was going to do anyway. But remember, it's not going to be a prank as such..."

"We know. It's going to be a thank-you-for-putting-up-with-us thing," James interrupted before adding "right then, what are we going to do? Moony, since you won it, you can start with any ideas."

"Thanks James. I've got a couple ideas, but I'm not too sure if they're worthy of such a big finale."

"Well, don't just sit there, what are they?" James eagerly asked.

Remus sighed before answering him. "You remember the prank we did to Snape in fourth year?"

"Which one?" Sirius asked with a small smile on his face.

"I think you _know_ which one I mean" Remus replied, as he glanced at his friend.

"Oh, you mean _that_ one!" Peter answered, remembering that day quite clearly.

"Exactly, Peter. Well, tell me what you guys reckon about this…"

Remus then explained his ideas, while James, Sirius and Peter listened in rapt silence, their grins growing with each passing moment.

* * *

Their planning suffered quite a bit as their final exams quickly approached. Remus had been given the new nickname of Cho, since he was seen during Class Hours Only. When he wasn't in class, he had spent every waking moment in the library. He hadn't even bothered turning up at the Great Hall for meals, instead electing to go straight to the kitchens whenever he was too hungry to study. 

Lily had often joined him in the library, along with several Ravenclaws, but it was Remus who now held the student record of continuous time spent in the library; a full thirty hours. He had accidentally fallen asleep one Saturday night, and Madam Pince had not noticed he was still there when she shut up for the night.

His friends would normally have made fun of him at this, but they were too caught up in their own studying, with both James and Sirius desperate to get into the Auror academy. Both had now dedicated this task of making the grades necessary to Trent, and everything he had helped them with this year. The two of them, along with Peter, could also be found with Remus in the library, where Peter had somehow managed to get lost in the restricted section, much to James and Sirius' amusement.

Defence was the first exam, and on the whole had gone quite well. All the help Remus had given Peter paid off as even he was able to do nearly every spell the examiners asked him to. They finished the exam by having to duel with their examiner, with James and Remus being the only students who managed to beat their opponents. Sirius had come close, but was defeated when he let his guard down and had his wand summoned from his hands, while Peter fell to pieces and had barely managed to block the first spell before he, too, was disarmed.

Transfiguration and Charms went by, with the four of them having enormous smiles on their faces as one of the questions in their Transfiguration exam was to write about animagi, while in Charms, they easily answered the question about the Patronus. Herbology had also gone by quite smoothly, although Remus had complained that he didn't think he had correctly described the effects of Mandrakes. Apparently, he had forgotten all about them being able to stun you when they haven't fully matured. He had been finally silenced when James had threatened to stick a silver cauldron on his head, and locking him in an empty classroom.

Both Sirius and James felt they had done reasonably well in Potions, but knew that the best mark in that class would either go to Lily, or, they begrudgingly admitted, Severus. Remus had Arithmancy instead, and announced that he was very confident of getting through it, while Peter quietly added that his Muggle Studies exam went alright enough.

Exam week finally finished, and the Marauders hadn't wasted any time in letting their hair down. Together they had pulled off some quite amazing pranks in the last few days leading up to the closing feast. Their best thus far had been when they made everyone at the entire Ravenclaw table believe that they were on the ceiling. Once the spell took effect, all the students had started running around the room, yelling their heads off about being upside down. To the rest of the school, however, the sight had been quite hilarious.

Unfortunately for the four of them, Professor McGonagall had decided to call an end to their fun, and after four days of non-stop pranks, she had banned them from pranking any more students for the rest of the year.


	21. Chapter 21 – The Big Finish

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how my version of it ends…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Contrary to what the title of this chapter suggests, this is NOT the last chapter of my story (there's one more after it, two including the timeline!).

In regards to the ceiling thing last chapter, I was going for a similar sensation to what Harry experienced in the maze in Goblet of Fire. As for why I allowed Remus to win his NEWT duel…correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure he was the Defence Professor for a while. Plus, he's a 'dark creature', I just reckon he'd kind of be forced to be good at it.

* * *

**Chapter 21 – The Big Finish**

It was two days before the end of year feast, and the four Gryffindors were feeling quite restless since being banned from pranking by their House Head three days ago.

James drummed his fingers on the table. "Ok, so now the question is this; are we going to try to get Peeves to help us?"

"You really think he's forgiven us for the prank we did to him in third year?"

"No idea, Moony. But it can't hurt to ask him. He might be a pest, but he's clearly one of us!" Sirius replied, balancing precariously on the back legs of his chair.

Peter winked at James and screeched in his best possible Lily voice, "SIRIUS BLACK, DON'T SIT LIKE THAT!"

This had the desired effect as Sirius' face paled, which made him lose his balance and topple backwards before crashing to the ground with a resounding 'thump'. As he picked himself up, he heard the annoying sound of his three friends laughing at him.

"Cheers, Peter. I _really_ needed that," Sirius said, glaring at the blond-haired wizard.

"No worries, Padfoot. Only too glad to help," Peter replied with a large grin, while James and Remus continued to laugh.

Sirius just shook his head before addressing his friends. "So, are we asking Peeves or not?"

"If we see him in time, yeah we should," Peter answered.

Sirius nodded before glaring at Remus and James who were still trying to recover from laughing. "Sod off you two. It wasn't that funny!"

"Actually, Padfoot, it kind of was. The look on your face when you thought Lily was yelling at you. You kind of looked like Snape since your face paled so much!"

Sirius then glared at Peter since this comment only made James and Remus laugh even harder.

* * *

As the students and Professors settled down for the closing feast, the doors to the Great Hall banged open and everyone's attention turned towards it. The three Aurors on guard silently withdrew their wands for precautionary measures, but they needn't have bothered. When the students saw the four Gryffindors standing there with large grins on their faces, everyone groaned and the Aurors stowed their wands. They knew whatever they had planned it was going to be spectacular, but harmless fun.

James and Sirius quickly moved to the front of the room and cast sonorus charms on themselves.

"Why, hello everyone. We know what you're thinking, and you'd be wrong...for once."

"You're expecting us to do something terrible…"

"Horrible…"

"Humiliating…"

"And downright evil."

"But, as Sirius said, you're wrong. After being banned from pranking the lot of you," James announced, before he and Sirius both glared at Professor McGonagall, "We have come to the conclusion that you all deserve a little treat for putting up with us like you have."

"Tomorrow, we leave Hogwarts for the final time…"

A cheer erupted from the Slytherin table, which was quickly matched by nearly all of the other students who had fallen victim to the Marauders. However, all noise was cut off when Remus cast a mass silencing charm, exactly the same as the one Trent did at Halloween.

James gave his friend a polite nod before continuing. "Thank you, Remus. As I was saying…"

"No you weren't, I was!" Sirius interrupted.

"Fine, as _we_ were saying," James then ignored the 'hmph' that Sirius gave, "In honour of this significant occasion, we thought we'd give you a night to remember!"

"Worthy of such a finale. Who's with us?!" Sirius said, grinning at everyone in the hall.

Several people made to reply, but couldn't since Remus hadn't removed the charm yet.

"Whoops, sorry about that," the werewolf sheepishly replied waving his wand again.

"So, without further delay, we shall bring you our parting piece. Peeves, if you would do the honours," James said, and everyone instantly became quite cautious. Peeves wasn't known to be exactly…helpful.

It was of great surprise therefore, when the Poltergeist came cackling through the still open doors and stopped in front of James and Sirius.

"My pleasure Potty, Blacky, Petty and Loopy."

He then smiled evilly at the staff table before it vanished behind a large plume of thick smoke.

"Thanks, Peeves," Peter said before both he and Remus joined the other two at the front of the hall.

"We have put up with these fine Professors all year, and some for much longer. As James said earlier, we were banned from pranking all of _you_, but there was nothing said about pranking the _Professors_," Remus added, a sly smile playing on his face.

The four wizards noticed several students grinning madly at the thought of what might become of their teachers.

"Those who've been to his office know the first thing he does…"

James was interrupted when Remus whispered something into his ear, and he suddenly got a shocked look on his face. "What do you mean they wouldn't…oh, all right then."

He then returned to addressing everyone else. "I have just been informed that it seems as though we might be the only ones who know this. Er, has anyone _else_ been to our Headmaster's office…ever?"

A show of hands was quickly tallied by Remus; thirty, made up mostly by the prefects.

"Right, that's not as many as we hoped. Well, let's just say that the first thing he usually does is offer you a lemondrop," James said, and was greeted by knowing nods from those thirty students.

"Now, please put your hands together for Professor Dumbledore, known tonight as Chief Lemonhead!" Sirius beamed as Peter waved his wand in the direction of where Dumbledore was sitting.

A gap appeared in the smoke, revealing a purple robed figure with a giant lemon and two eyeholes replacing the familiar white beard and half-moon glasses. The stunned silence that greeted this was quickly replaced by a few stifled giggles before everyone, even the Slytherins, burst into raucous laughter.

"Don't worry, the effects will only last until the feast starts," Sirius said, and grinned when he received a chorus of boos and shouts of "can't you leave him like that?"

"Now, now, be nice. Moving onto the House Heads," he replied.

"Ah yes, Professors McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick and Tuero. What do you think guys, should we leave them in suspense for a little while longer?" Remus casually asked his friends.

"NO!" was the resounding reply from the rest of the student population.

Remus put his hands up in surrender as he, James, Sirius and Peter waved their wands where those four teachers had been sitting. As before, the thick smoke dissipated, leaving everyone gasping at what the four, five including Peeves, had done.

McGonagall was sitting there, with her normal stern look on her face. The only difference was that her face had been transfigured into that of a cat, complete with whiskers and ears. She had a large sign floating behind her saying 'housetrained, very independent, free to a good home.'

Professor Sprout had been given the same treatment as Trent had. In other words, the Herbology Professor and Hufflepuff Head now had a nice tree growing from the top of her head. Remus had figured out how to cancel the time limit so that the charm could be ended whenever he liked.

Flitwick now resembled something of a giant. If his beard and hair was black, he and Hagrid could most likely pass as twins. As it was, he could be mistaken for the grandfather of the half-giant. It was quite a dramatic change for someone used to standing and sitting on books just to see over tables.

It was the Head of Slytherin that caused the most laughter, however. Professor Tuero's face now resembled that of a giant snake, complete with forked tongue as he had found out when he went to speak and a hiss escaped instead.

Peeves then casually blew away the remaining smoke to reveal the rest of the staff. They had been similarly affected, and were changed into something that was considered to be their 'trademark'. Lily had been forewarned about the entire thing, and had managed to borrow a wizarding camera and was happily taking pictures.

The show was complete when a large banner dropped down from the ceiling which read; 'The Great Professor Prank: Seven Years of Madness! – Proudly brought to you by the Marauders and Peeves!'

It then flipped over; 'That'll teach you for not letting us prank everyone!'

The sign then blew a giant raspberry, covering the entire table and staff in spittle, before disintegrating in a ball of fire. Once that had happened, another cloud of smoke engulfed the staff table. Lily then levitated copies of the photos over to the table and waited for the smoke to disperse. When it did, the Professors were back to their normal selves, with varying looks on their faces.

Dumbledore looked positively delighted and his blue eyes were twinkling madly at the photos. Most of the other Professors all found it to be quite hilarious as well, but McGonagall and Tuero looked furious. They both stood up but were quickly silenced by Dumbledore.

"Now, there is no need for that, Minerva, Linus. As they said, you did not mention about not playing jokes on us."

"But Albus! You cannot be…"

"It was just harmless fun, Minerva. I see no reason to punish them for it."

"Fifty points from Gryffindor, EACH!" Tuero bellowed.

Dumbledore just smiled before speaking. "Wonderful display you four. I shall award you those points back, plus an extra twenty each for pulling it off so marvellously."

The four young wizards grinned up at the Headmaster before accepting the applause from their fellow students while making their way to their table for the feast.

* * *

James had packed his things and made his way into the Gryffindor tower to check how his friends were doing. Lily had left for breakfast, and James smiled as he knew she'd be waiting for him when he arrived. He opened the dormitory door, and burst out laughing with what he saw. Sirius, Remus and Peter were involved in a full blown war…pillow style. They must have heard someone laughing because James soon got beaned in the face with one of the pillows.

James glared then broke out into a smile, "Right, that does it. You're gone, Padfoot!"

Sirius grinned at him, while Remus and Peter both used this time to whack Sirius in the head. James again laughed as he saw Sirius' face go from amusement to disbelief.

"Darn it, Prongs! I hadn't managed to get hit yet, then you come in and ruin it!"

"Rubbish, Sirius. I got you loads of times!"

"Go bite yourself, Moony," Sirius snapped, but could hardly hide his grin.

James glanced at Remus and Peter and made a silent agreement with them. Sirius didn't know what hit him…well, he did, but he couldn't do anything about it as his three friends pummelled him for a good ten minutes with pillows, Sirius laughing most of the time.

Finally, after they had felt Sirius had been dealt with enough, they collapsed on the floor. James then looked over at his friends, and made a choice, based on what Remus had said that Trent had told him; 'it's in times of darkness that you realise who your true friends are.'

He smiled, these were his real friends, and nothing was ever going to change that. Lily could be the single most important person in his life one day, but these three were like brothers to him. He sighed, something that Remus noticed.

"What's the matter, James?"

"Just thinking."

"That's a first!"

"Oh shut up, Padfoot. I think we should make an oath."

"An oath? What for?" Peter asked.

James grinned, "Marauders forever. Brothers until the very end."

Sirius grinned back, while Remus and Peter both nodded their agreement.

James stood up and held out his hand. Sirius followed by placing his hand on top on James', while Peter and Remus soon caught on to what they were doing. James looked into the eyes on each of his friends, and saw the determination in all of them.

"Forever together, nothing will tear us apart."

The other three nodded, and Sirius spoke up, "Anyone betrays another to the grave, the others are to kill them."

"That's a bit…harsh, don't you think?" Peter said. He didn't like the idea of killing one of his friends.

"No, it isn't. You know, Padfoot, if we'd made this a few years ago…"

"I didn't kill you!" Sirius said, his eyes wide with fear as he saw the smirk his werewolf friend had.

"Ah, but you did on the inside, Sirius. As I told you a little while ago, I'm not sure how long it will take for me to fully trust you again."

"I know, and I'm sorry, Remus. For everything."

"Hey, does that mean we can blame you for everything then, Padfoot?" James asked with a small grin.

"Shut up, Prongs. I only meant about the stupid things I've done."

"So that _is_ everyt…"

"SHUT UP, PRONGS!!"

James couldn't help but laugh, but he quickly regained his composure. "All right, so do we have a deal? If one of us knowingly leads another to his death, the others can kill the betrayer."

James looked at his friends and saw them each nod. They then said at the same time, "Marauders forever!"

The four of them broke apart, and headed down for breakfast, laughing as Sirius' stomach protested about not being fed yet.


	22. Chapter 22 – Marauder Memories

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how I made it end…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

Quit your bellyaching, Song, or I might just conveniently 'forget' about that bottle of rum next year, lolol!

Righto, this is the last 'true' chapter of this story. The next bit is a timeline which is, er, well, just that. Sorry also, but I decided to delve into the world of flashbacks…_please_ don't kill me! I just thought it would be good since this is very much a reminiscing chapter…you can almost _smell_ the nostalgia! Or is that my dinner burning, hmm…

* * *

**Chapter 22 – Marauder Memories**

The five of them were amongst the last to get on the train. As luck would have it, they managed to find an empty carriage.

"I guess this'll have to do" James said as he slid the compartment door open and was followed in by his three friends and girlfriend.

"You know something? Unless I'm mistaken, this is the same carriage that the five of us sat in for our first ever trip."

"Hey, you're right Moony! But if I remember rightly, a certain redhead didn't stay with us the whole journey."

"That's because you called me a mudblood, you git!" Lily replied, glaring at Sirius who quickly became interested in the back of his hands.

"In defence of Paddy, he'd…"

"I hate being called that! How do you like me calling you 'Prongsie'!"

"Not much," James admitted. "As I was saying, in his defence, he'd grown up in an environment constantly hearing that word."

"True, but he _was_ the first of us three to accept Remus' condition" Peter argued.

"Oh, good point. Do you remember that day, Moony?"

But Remus wasn't listening. He was staring outside at a very familiar sight. The Whomping Willow could be seen easily, and Remus was remembering his numerous trips beneath its relative safety. The first time he went, he could only remember waking up in the hospital wing covered in bandages and aching like mad. This was the only indication that he had scratches from where he had taken to biting himself. He was brought from his thoughts when James gently shook him.

"Hey, earth to Remus Lupin!"

"Hmm? Oh sorry, I was just thinking."

"About?"

"The Whomping Willow."

"Well, that's basically what we're talking about! Do you remember when we came up to you and told you we didn't care about your condition?"

"Of course I do. It was one of the best moments of my life" Remus answered honestly.

_-flashback-_

Remus had just finished his latest Defence essay and was currently lying on his bed. Full moon was still over a week away, and he already was starting to feel restless. He heard the door open, but didn't bother to see who it was. He could instantly recognise his three friends purely by their scent.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Remus asked as he sat up and swung his legs over the side of his bed.

"Can we talk to you about something?"

When Remus gestured for him to continue, Sirius sighed before speaking again.

"We've figured it out."

"Figured what out, Sirius?"

Sirius nearly snorted. "Don't try to deny it, Lupin. The reason you disappear every month isn't because your mother's sick. Rather convenient that it always happens around full moon."

"I don't know what you're talking about" Remus replied, but his eyes were starting to widen a little.

"It's alright, Remus. We, er, kind of snuck down under my cloak to the shack just before sunrise a few weeks ago and saw you on the floor of one of the rooms."

Remus closed his eyes to keep his emotions in check when James said this. "And?"

It was Peter who spoke. "Well, we thought you were dead. You had loads of scratches and stuff and you were covered in blood."

'They know. They'll hate me forever now' Remus thought before he jumped off his bed and starting packing his things away.

"What are you doing?" James asked.

"If you three can figure it out, so can anyone. I'm going to Professor Dumbledore and telling him that I'm leaving."

"Are you insane! Why do you want to leave for? We don't care that you're a…that you have a furry little problem!" James replied, while both Sirius and Peter looked at James in confusion.

"A furry little problem?" Sirius politely asked James who shrugged in reply.

"It makes Remus more…what's the word…"

"Approachable?" Peter provided.

"Yeah, that's it. It makes it far easier to talk to you about it. We want to help you keep this a secret."

That stopped Remus in his tracks and he slowly sank to the floor. He couldn't do anything to stop the tears from rolling down his face. His friends watched him, not knowing what he was doing until they heard him start to sob.

"Remus? What…what's wrong?" James asked, feeling quite concerned for his friend.

The young wizard looked up, tear marks staining his face. "Oh, like _that's_ so hard to figure out!" he angrily snapped back.

Remus sniffed and wiped his face before continuing. "You have no idea how painful it is. Every month I try to resist it, but fail. I can't even remember what I do on those nights!"

"Why not?"

"Because the wolf takes over his mind, Potter" Sirius answered, and James just nodded in reply.

"Why didn't you tell us? Why did you lie and say you had to visit your Mum?"

"I…I didn't want you to find out, Peter. I…I've never had any friends before, and was scared that you'd abandon me if you ever found out."

"Are you kidding? This is brilliant!"

"What are you talking about, Sirius?"

"Well, Potter. Remember how I got that howler from my mother after I'd been sorted into Gryffindor last year?"

"Yeah, but what that got to do with Remus being…"

"Not only am I in the _wrong_ _house_, but now I find out one of my best friends is a halfbreed! In other words, I'm now _certain_ that my family hates me! I'm going to be, officially, an outcast. That's wicked! Of course, not that I'll blab your secret to anyone, Lupin."

James and Peter looked at each other before turning to Remus and noting his totally confused look.

"You…you mean you don't…don't mind?" he slowly asked.

"Of course we don't. It just means we have to kick you out of here once a month!"

"What Potter was _meant_ to say, Lupin, is that we reckon we can help you" Sirius added.

"How?"

"You heard of the term 'animagus' before?"

Remus nodded at Sirius' question. "Yeah, it's the name given to a wizard or witch that can turn into an animal at will. Professor McGonagall's one."

"We have reason to believe that if we become animagi, we can come with you on those nights."

Remus blinked at Sirius in surprise before shaking his head. "No! You can't come with me! It's too dangerous, what if I lose control? I could seriously hurt you!"

"No you won't. Even if you bite us, you can't infect us when we're in our animal forms. I read that in one of the books in the restricted section. You know we're going to do this anyway. You're our friend, and we want to help you through this."

Remus looked up at his three friends when Sirius said this. He saw James give him a large grin which the young werewolf quickly returned.

"How about starting with calling us by our first names?" he asked, looking back at Sirius.

Sirius shot him a smile. "You have a deal, Lup…Remus."

_-end flashback-_

Remus smiled as he looked across at James before he next spoke. "Of course, I find it rather funny that you three weren't the first to confront me about it."

"Yeah well, we weren't _that_ far behind!"

"Oh no, of course you weren't. I only found out about it before Christmas in second year. So that's only…five months or so" Lily replied, giving Remus a knowing smile.

"Well, we would've figured it out sooner if Moony wasn't so ruddy stubborn and just _told_ us!"

Remus started to laugh at James' comment, and was soon joined by everyone else. By the time they had calmed down, the train had pulled away from the station.

"Remember how we came up with our nicknames?" Sirius said.

"Yep, still think you should've had 'Hydrant' instead of 'Padfoot' though!" James shot back with a large grin, while Sirius scowled.

"Particularly after what happened a…"

"Now Moony, there's no need to mention _that_" Sirius interrupted, his face starting to go a little red.

"What happened?" Lily asked.

"No force on this entire planet would _possibly_ make me relive that story."

"Not even Veritaserum?"

"Not even that, Lily. And if you even _think_ about telling her, Prongs, you will suffer a most painful death."

James tried his best to look exasperated, but could barely hide his grin.

"Ooooh, remember the question in our Defence OWL!" Peter suddenly exclaimed, changing the topic from Padfoot's little incident with the firewhiskey a few months ago.

"Oh yes. You said you only managed to get the snout shape, the pupils and the tufted tail," Remus then glared at his friend "I was highly offended at that, Peter."

"Sorry Remus, but you know how I got around exams."

"It wouldn't have been such a problem if you studied!" Lily argued.

Peter just rolled his eyes before grinning at Sirius. "Actually, if I remember that day rightly, or should I say night…"

"Shut up, Peter!" Sirius growled. He knew all too well that night; the night he first betrayed Remus' trust.

_-flashback-_

It was just after Remus had invoked his Prefect status and convinced James to not remove Snape's underwear following their Defence OWL. Sirius had moved over to the young Slytherin, who had been released from his position by James.

He had grabbed Severus' robes and yanked him to his feet.

"Listen and listen well, you great greasy git. _Don't_ mess with us. Remus might not be as nice next time" he hissed.

"Really," Severus sneered. "Why would it be such a crime to _mess_ with you? You're a failure, Black. Your brother is ten times the wizard you'll ever be. His loyalties…"

"Are pathetic! It wouldn't surprise me _one little bit_ if he became a Death Eater. We both know you already _will_ be one."

"And since _you_ desire to be an Auror, it will make for a _very_ interesting duel. The family outcast verses…"

"The most arrogant moron ever created!"

"Oh, I never knew you felt the same way about Potter" he casually remarked.

Sirius' eyes narrowed and his voice was dangerously low when he next spoke. "Tell you what, _Snivellus_. You want to see something interesting? Prod the knot at the base of the Whomping Willow tonight. _Prove_ you're a real man, and not just a snivelling little greaseball."

_-end flashback-_

Sirius shook his head in disgust. "That is one of the stupidest things I've ever done. I don't know what I was thinking."

"Not much, but we expect that from you, Padfoot!"

"Shut up, Prongs. Moony attacked you first when we finally went with him. Now _that_ was funny!"

James just glared at his friend. "Yes well, I think you learnt your lesson when both me and Moony ganged up on you next time round!"

"_That_ certainly wasn't fair! Leave me with the little rat!"

"Hey!"

"Sorry Peter, but you have to admit it's true!"

"Yeah, but how could I possibly help Padfoot when you guys are like a hundred times my size!"

"That was the whole idea, Wormtail. We didn't _want_ you to help him!" Remus said, grinning at Peter. He then turned to James.

"You know, I still can't believe you tried to poison me at the Yule Ball in fourth year."

I didn't _poison_ you! I just slipped something in your pumpkin juice, that's all."

"You weren't even _close_ to going out with me at that stage, James. That was most immature of you to do that to Remus" Lily chided.

"Hey, I apologised to him, didn't I Moony!"

"Yes, _two years_ after it happened!" Remus retorted, noting the glare Lily then sent James in amusement.

"It wasn't my…it…it was Sirius' idea!"

"WHAT? That's rubbish, Prongs. You told me you were jealous. I only pointed out the fact that they came down together, I can't believe you didn't recognise Moony."

"I doubt any of us thought he'd wear what he did" Peter replied with a small smile.

_-flashback-_

"Where's Remus gone?" James asked as he attacked his unruly black mop of hair with a wet comb…again.

"He muttered something about charming his dress robe" Sirius replied, tugging lightly at the collar of his charcoal robe.

"Well, I guess. But he shouldn't be too worried about it, I mean his maroon one looks fine to…for Merlin's sake, _nothing_ works on it!"

"Then exaggerate it" Peter replied as he finished tying his shoes before joining Sirius at the common room exit.

"How?"

"Make it stick up more, you git!"

"Shut up, Sirius. But that'll make it look…"

"Just the same as it always does" Peter cut in, while James shot him a glare before ruffling his hair with both hands.

"There you go, it looks like you've just woken up!" Sirius exclaimed, before ducking as James hurled a cushion in his direction.

"Come on, we don't want to be late" Peter said as he made his outside into the hallway, with James and Sirius soon following, to wait for their dates.

As they were waiting, two people exited the portrait opening from above them. James turned to see who it was and found himself staring in awe. Lily slowly descended the stairs wearing a long forest green dress, her long red hair neatly braided with silver and gold bracelets glimmering at her wrists. The boy behind her, who James didn't recognise, was wearing an intricately patterned silver robe with gold highlighting the patterns and edges.

'Wow!' was all James could think as the two of them came to a halt at the foot of the stairs.

The boy then looked at him and gave a shy smile.

"Oh Merlin!" Sirius exclaimed, "Re…Remus? Is that really you?"

The boy nodded meekly before both he and Lily swept past the three gobsmacked young wizards and headed towards the Great Hall.

"That was _Remus_?" Peter managed to say after the pair had long gone.

"He looked great! Amazing thinking with the silver considering…well, you know" Sirius said.

James and Peter both nodded. Since Remus was a werewolf, he wasn't all that comfortable around silver.

"Not as good as Lily though" James mused.

On the inside he was feeling quite hurt. He had asked Lily a fortnight ago if she'd go with him, only to be told to go and stick his head inside a food blender. He never thought that one of his friends would ask her to go with them. For the first time he could remember, he was actually jealous of Remus.

_-end flashback-_

"That was a most amazing robe, Remus."

"Thanks Lily. I have to thank you again for your helping me find those charms for it."

"You're welcome. Thanks for asking me to the ball in the first place. I was most glad you did."

"Hello? I'm sitting right here, you're not supposed to talk about stuff like that!" James remarked, while Lily and Remus both smiled at him.

"Where did you learn to dance so well anyway?"

"My parents taught me that summer, Sirius" Remus replied, before looking out of the window. It was still painful to be talking about them, even after all this time.

"You're always welcome at my place, Moony."

"Thanks Prongs, but I'm going to stay with my grandparents for a while. At least until we get our NEWT results."

"How do you reckon you'll go?" Peter asked.

"Compared to you three, pretty good I'd imagine" he replied with a cheeky grin.

"Sounds like a challenge if you ask me! I'll bet you a galleon that I beat you in Potions!"

Remus snorted, "obviously you will. I didn't even take that ruddy subject!"

James grinned at him before Sirius stuck out his hand.

"Come on Prongs, I'll take you up on that bet."

"Fair enough, Padfoot. I think we all know that those two will come out as the top two of our year."

"Actually James. With all due respect, your grades picked up markedly over the last two years" Remus mentioned.

"He's right you know. Who would've thought it, ickle Prongsie the scholar!"

"Shut up, _Paddy_!"

"You reckon both of you will get into the Auror program?" Remus asked, deciding to change the topic of discussion.

"I hope so! That way, when we get high enough in the ranks, we can change those stupid regulations that prevent you from joining the Ministry."

"Thank you for your concern, James, but we all know that I'm going to have to get used to not having a job."

"That is so unfair on you, Remus. I mean, everyone at Hogwarts knows how much of a hard worker you are. Just because you aren't yourself one night a month doesn't mean anything."

"Lily's right, Moony. You'll find a job, no worries!"

Remus smiled at Peter when he said that, but deep down he knew it wasn't going to be easy for him from now on.

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate everything you've done for me the last seven years."

"Don't worry about it. Besides, you always helped us with our assignments and stuff, helping you out was the least we could do" Sirius replied, giving him a smile.

"This year was probably the most memorable."

"And why is that, James?" Lily sweetly asked.

"Well, for starters, we had to put up with those Aurors all year. I mean, Trent was great, but the others were kind of boring."

"Oh, I thought you were going for the whole 'kind and caring friend' act. Say things like what those heartless monsters did to Remus. And that we ended up together" Lily replied, somewhat disappointed, while James smacked himself in the forehead for _not_ saying that.

Peter allowed himself to smile grimly. "I have to admit, Trent did get us quite good."

"Yeah, that's the only time we've been caught for something we _didn't_ do!" Sirius agreed.

"And the prank war we had" Remus added, thankful that his friends hadn't dwelled on his parents death.

"Ah yes, that was loads of fun!" James said nodding enthusiastically.

"I'm going to miss this place" Lily softly said as they rounded a corner and Hogwarts disappeared from view.

"A toast then," James suddenly spoke. "To one of the most interesting…no, _defining_ years we've had, and to our future. We'll just have to wait for the lunch cart to come in so we can get a drink to toast with."

They all nodded and quickly became lost in their thoughts as the train slowly made its way from the castle they had called home for the last seven years. It was now time for them to face the ultimate challenge; the real world, in the midst of a war.

_**Fin**_


	23. Sort of epilogue

Do I really need to say this again? J K Rowling IS Harry Potter. If you recognise anything from any movie, TV show, book or whatever else, it's probably because it _is_ from them. If you want my 'full' warning, you can check out either 'Dormant Power' or 'Beginning of the End'.

If you've read both those fics, then you know how I made it end…but how did it begin? Again, only some names are mine, everything else is not! I've based this from the Marauders perspective so…well you'll know the story when something happens to a certain someone, even though I don't write about it in this one! Also check out 'The Apprentice', it has some info you won't find in my other two stories (wink, wink!).

If you can't figure out why they were going to give Sirius the nickname 'Hydrant', think about what dogs generally like to do when they see one…or is that a stereotype?

Well, it's done, my first Marauder era story is complete. Now, I remember saying at the end of Beginning of the End…lol, that writes quite weirdly! I said that BotE was my favourite of my stories. That isn't really the case. I decided against adding this one in since it didn't seem fair on my other stories. This one is easily my favourite of the lot…and I'm not sure if I will be able to top it with anything I may write in the future.

The reason I love this fic more than my others is because I find the story of Harry and his friends to be less intriguing than the one of the Marauders. I know I also said that I wouldn't write about this (my, wasn't _that_ a long time ago!)…but I had a sudden inspiration to start it. I was actually listening to my Travis CD (for the first time since I got it) when I did. Which song? 'Side'. I'll even put up the chorus for you:

_That the grass is always greener on the other side,  
The neighbour's got a new car that you wanna drive,  
And when time is running out you wanna stay alive.  
We all live under the same sky,  
We all will live, we all will die.  
There is no wrong, there is no right,  
The circle only has one side._

Yup, the last line is the reason this fic got written in the first place. I kind of had to go 'full circle' to get the whole story, which I believe I have not yet done, but until I write a fic about Trent the circle will not be complete. Having said that, with the addition of this story, it hopefully makes the story a bit easier to follow.

Incidentally, I did find this fic much more difficult to write than my previous ones. I believe the reason for this was the storyline…or lack thereof. In reality, the only storylines in this are how Trent interacted with, and then saved, the Marauders, and that Lily and James grew closer together. Apart from that, there _was_ no real storyline like in my other stories. Despite that, I had the most fun with this because I could pretty much put anything I wanted in it!

Most fun chapter to write for this would have been 13 – Sirius Celebrations. Favourite prank…personally, I like the bit with Padfoot after the Quidditch game, but since it's not _really_ a prank, I'll put their big finale instead! Most difficult chapter to write…hmm, probably ch 11 – A New Ride. I was stuck on it for _ages_ before I could figure out some way to write it!

The order in which it's best to read these in? Probably the same as I say on my profile...but I'm not really sure. I'd like to think you don't _have_ to read them in order, and they make sense by themselves…but I could be wrong!

My sincere thanks to everyone who took the plunge and decided to read my stories (really, I mean that), and also those who reviewed. You've all given me a huge shock with your support and encouragement. A very big thank you to Sonic and Matt for being my betas for this story (and an extra one for Sonic since he looked through Dormant and BotE too!). No comments, which I took as meaning that it was adequately written.

For those looking for the timeline, I moved it under BotE as it would probably spoil the next 2 stories in this series.


End file.
